Darkness and Light
by Cody the Impaler
Summary: A Shadow Hearts III story that focuses on the bad ending, where Johnny attempts to find a way to save Shania from the curse of malice, and may feature some assitance from the characters of Shadow Hearts I and Shadow Hearts II.
1. December 1929

**Author's Note**: Hey, everyone! Well, this is my first time trying anything relating to _Shadow Hearts: From the New World_. I have avoided this story, mostly because I didn't care for it. I think that's partially due to the Shadow Hearts team being rushed to create a new game, but it's too bad that this game could be the last in the series. Nevertheless, I have some ideas with this game that I decided to put into motion. In regards to my other two Shadow Hearts stories, this story will be in perfect harmony with _Life in Japan_ but not so much with _The Red Scare_. However, elements of _The Red Scare_ will be found. I suppose that it can be said that this story is not completely canonical, but I think it will be a good story nevertheless. As always, I ask you to read and give critical reviews.

_Nothing lasts forever,  
but the certainty of change_—

"Darkness Be My Friend"—Bruce Dickinson

**Darkness and Light**

**Chapter I**

New York City, December 1929, snow descended among the Christmas lights, and the city workers did everything in their power to keep the snow off the streets. But this Christmas would be different for most Americans. The affects of the October crash were beginning to affect the pocket books of Americans around the country. But for Christmas, parents would go the extra mile to make certain their children had plenty of presents under the Christmas tree. However, in the Garland Detective Agency, this worry about Christmas was not a problem. The proprietor of this agency was a 22 year old blonde haired-green eyed man, Johnny Garland. Although Johnny was 22, according to his birth certificate, in terms of his looks he was only 17, and these looks often affected his worldview. Johnny had been born wealthy—the son of a prominent New York doctor—but his family's wealth was diminishing; and to make matters worse, so was his detective business. Since the October crash, Johnny had received fewer and fewer phone calls. By December, Johnny informed his butler—the incredibly strong Lenny Curtis—that "a call looking for a lost cat or dog would sound nice."

"I know it, Master Johnny," the cue ball headed butler responded. "The president says we'll soon be out of this mess, but it's been getting worse and worse for the last two months."

Johnny sighed. "Of course, money isn't everything."

Lenny nodded. "True, it can lead to greed—one of the forms of corruption for most people."

Johnny returned the nod, and began to pace around the agency. Turning back to his servant he said, "Care for a drink, Lenny?"

But the butler gasped. "Master, you know that's illegal?"

Johnny chuckled. "Well, if you feel that way, we can always drive to Canada where it is legal."

But Lenny returned the chuckle. "No, it's all right. Having been born in Switzerland, I think it's stupid that a bunch of tetollers living thousands of miles away in Kansas are trying to change the way the every other American lives their life."

Johnny smiled. "To the underground nightclub?"

"To the underground nightclub it is!"

* * *

The Manhattan bar, or nightclub, that Johnny and Lenny visited was called in secret 'Killarney's'—named after a town in Southwest Ireland. The proprietor of Killarney's was addressed by his pseudo-name, James Guinness. James was the man's first name, but Guinness was his pseudo-last name, named after the famous Irish stout beer. James was an Irish-Catholic immigrant, who survived the 1912 _Titanic_ disaster, and he did not take kindly that a bunch of Protestant women living in Kansas were going to tell him whether or not he could have a drink.

"Good to see you boys," James said in his thick Irish accent. "What can I get ya?"

"One of your homemade lagers," Johnny replied.

James nodded, and turned to Lenny. "And for you, sir?"

"I'll take some blended whiskey with some ice, water, and an olive."

"No problem."

Johnny turned to Lenny, while James prepared his drink. "You ask for some interesting drinks, don't you?"

"It comes from the time that I was living in Cannes."

"Cannes?"

"A town in Southern France."

After James served their drinks, and Lenny took a sip and Johnny a gulp, Lenny continued the conversation. "You know, Master, you seemed a little depressed earlier. Are you drinking to forget something?"

Johnny took another gulp. "Maybe a little. Business being down and such."

"I don't think that's it."

Johnny turned. "Then what do you think it is?"

"It's Shania, isn't it? You were thinking about her again?"

Johnny stared into his beer, and then stared into the whiskey bottles on the wall. "You know me too well, Lenny."

Lenny smiled. "I've known you, since you were a boy, Master."

Johnny sighed, and turned to his servant and friend. "I could save the world, Lenny, but I couldn't save her."

Like a big brother, Lenny put a hand on his master's shoulder. "Try not to think that way, Master. You may still be able to save her."

"The only way I could save her is to do with Riccardo did with Edna."

"Which was?"

"To kill her, before she went even further insane." Johnny took another gulp. "Of course, I don't even know where she is."

"No word?"

Johnny shook his head. "No word. But I think Natan may be tracking her."

Lenny took another sip. "Master, I think I know someone who can help you."

"Who's that?"

"Roger Bacon."

"Roger Bacon?"

Lenny nodded. "Yep. If anybody knows anything about how to remove the curse of malice, it's definitely him."

"But we don't know where he is, Lenny. After the final battle, he left the country, and said he was going home to Wales."

"I know where he lives."

Johnny was stunned. "You do?"

Lenny nodded. "Yeah. We can leave as soon as you like. How would you prefer to travel—by sea or by air?"

"We'll book a plane…"

"But that'll cost us more money, Master, and remember, we haven't been getting many calls lately."

"I still have some money from my journey to save the world."

Lenny nodded. "Very well. I'll make the arrangements tomorrow." 


	2. Roger's House

**Author's Note**: Greetings, everyone!  Well, I'm going to assume that if you made it this far, you survived the first chapter.  This first chapter is quite a bit longer than that one, but I think it will maintain your attention.  As always, please continue to read and review.

_It feels like the end,  
when you're closer to losing your dreams,  
than losing a friend.  
Flying blind.  
I'm shooting into the dark,  
who will I find?  
Oh, girl,  
and if it takes me a lifetime.  
I swear, I'll tear down every wall.  
Love conquers all_—

"Love Conquers All"—Deep Purple

**Darkness and Light**

**Chapter II**

Two days later, Johnny and Lenny left New York City for Wales.  They arrived in Cardiff about an hour before dusk and secured a car, with Lenny driving.  Unfortunately, no roads existed directly to Roger's place, so eventually Lenny and Johnny had to park the car and walk.

            The road to Roger's house was a lush forest of pine and deciduous trees—which had lost their leaves due to the cold winter—and the sun's final rays reflected on these trees.

            "This is a fascinating place," Johnny said.  "I've never seen any place like it."

            "How could you growing up in New York?"

            "New York's not the only place I've been to, remember?  I did travel throughout North and South America, and I've been to Europe before."

            Lenny nodded.  "True, it was in Europe where I first met you and your father.  But you're right about this place.  It hasn't changed for centuries, I'm sure.  It certainly looks the same, since the last time I saw it."

            "When was that?"

            "…About 15 years ago, I guess."

            "Lenny?"

            "Yeah?"

            "I never really asked you this, because I could tell that it always bothered you, but I am curious to know…"

            "Know what, Master?"

            "How is it that you know Roger, because he said something about you knowing him in Roswell—that you kidnapped him or something?"

            Lenny sighed.  "It's quite a story."

            "Will you please tell it?"

            Again, Lenny sighed.  "Before the Great War, I was in Italy.  I was there, because I thought about becoming a Swiss Guard."

            "A Swiss Guard?"

            "They're a group of men, who have guarded the pope, since the sixteenth century.  Anyway, while I was there, I met a man named Nicholas Conrad—although he preferred to be called by the Russian form of his name, 'Nicholai.'  And Nicholai had some interesting things to tell me."

            "Like what?"

            "Like he was the son of Tsar Nicholas II, the last Tsar of Russia."

            Johnny laughed.

            And Lenny smiled.  "I laughed as well.  I may not be the sharpest knife in the drawer, but I know the difference between chicken salad and chicken shit."

            Johnny continued to laugh.

            And Lenny maintained his smile.  "You can imagine how surprised I was when what Nicholai told me turned out to be true."

            Johnny ceased laughing.  "Wh-what?!  I thought Tsar Nicholas' son was named 'Alexei,' and that he suffered from hemophilia."

            Lenny nodded.  "That is correct, but apparently before Tsar Nicholas II became the tsar, he had a little affair with a Polish ballerina.  That woman was Nicholai's mother, but it was decided that it would be in the best interest of the Russian state to keep this little affair quiet, so Nicholai and his mother were sent away.  Nicholai's mother died in exile, and Nicholai was discovered by a man named Gregory Rasputin…"

            "Gregory Rasputin?!  Isn't that the guy who tried to take over the Russian Empire?"

            Lenny nodded.  "The very same, but Rasputin was also in charge of a secret society called 'Sapientes Gladio.'"

            "Sapientes Gladio?"

            "Yep, they were a society built on world domination, and Nicholai was telling me all these things that the society could do for me."

            "Like what?"

            "Money, power, the chance to command my own regiment—in short, I could be my own boss.  However, I don't think I would have joined, if it wasn't for meeting Rasputin himself."

            "What kind of person was he like?"

            "A great manipulator—he knew how to a devil one moment and a saint the other."  Lenny paused to look at the sky; only a few more minutes before it would be dark.  "But let's not dwell on Sapientes Gladio too much.  You asked me how I knew Roger Bacon, and now I'm going to tell you.

            "Sometime in early 1915, Nicholai ordered me and the regiment that I commanded, known as the Steel Claws, to kidnap Roger from his home in Wales, and bring him to Italy.  For the life of me, I still don't understand why Nicholai and Rasputin needed him anyway, but I did as I was told."

            The last ray of sunlight sparkled on the Welsh coastline, when Lenny and Johnny reached a most unusual structure of steel and brick.

            "What in the hell is this?!" Johnny said in awe.

            "Roger's house," Lenny replied, without the same awe as his young master.

            "It looks like something out of a Science Fiction book!"

            Lenny chuckled.  "Well, let's see if he's home."

            Lenny rapped on the front door, and on the other side looked to be a man in his nineties, but was actually much older.  The man was incredibly thin, with a white vandyke beard; bald, except for the white hair around his ears and in the back; and wearing a robe from the Franciscan order.

            "How goes it, Roger?" Lenny said.

            "Lenny?!  Johnny?!  What are you two doing here?"

            "We came to see you.  Or more specifically, we need your help."

            "Well, hurry up and come on in!  It gets extremely cold at this time of night."

            Lenny and Johnny did as Roger commanded, and although Roger showed them to some chairs, Johnny was unable to sit down.  He had to look at what was inside Roger's home—cutting edge technology and books.  For Johnny, it was the books that stood out the most—they were all tattered and worn. 

            "Johnny," Roger began, "aren't you going to sit down?"

            "Oh, sorry, I was just staring at your books…"

            "When did you get interested in books, Master?"

            "Since the end of my journey.  I visited some pretty cool places, and since then I thought it was interesting to read about them."  Johnny took a chair, as Roger directed.  "But your books, Roger, are they a hundred years old?"

            Roger chuckled.  "More like five to seven hundred years old, Johnny."

            "W-what?!  Wouldn't books that old be in a museum somewhere?"

            "I, myself, practically am a living museum, Johnny."

            "How so?"

            "I have walked the Earth for over 700 years."

            Johnny laughed.

            But Roger merely smiled.  "So, I understand that you two need my help.  What's going on?"

            "Master," Lenny began with a gesture, "why don't you explain what's going on."

            "I want to help Shania."

            "Shania?  Oh!  You mean that young Native American girl, right?"

            Johnny nodded.

            "What's wrong with her?"

            "During our journey together, she received the kiss of malice from Lady…or Grace…Eventually the malice inside her overtook her…I couldn't save her."

            "And you want to save her now, do you, Johnny?"

            Johnny nodded.  "With all the power in my body!"

            "And I want to help him," added Lenny.

            Roger placed his chin between his thumb and first finger.  "There's malice inside of all of us, Johnny.  But at the same time, there's love inside all of us too, and they say that love conquers all."

            "It didn't in this case."

            "But it has in other cases."

            "I can't worry about other cases, Roger.  I can only worry about my own."

            "The point I'm trying to make, Johnny, is that there is a way to remove the malice in Shania."

            Johnny's eyes grew wide.  "How?"

            "How did you counter the red light of malice during your journey?"

            "With the blue light of the Earth."

            "Correct.  And such a light can free Shania—along with one other thing."

            "One other thing?"

            Roger nodded, and stood from his chair.  Gesturing for Johnny and Lenny he added, "Please follow me."

            Roger directed the two men to an adjacent room.  Inside was a small chapel, with statues of Christ and the Virgin next to the altar.  The statues looked to be centuries old and were beginning to chip.  But on the chapel's small altar, inside a monstrance, was a piece of the consecrated Host.  Roger genuflected, and so did Lenny.  Johnny genuflected as well, although it was a moment after Roger and Lenny had genuflected—it had been a while since Johnny had been to mass.

            "You know what that is, do you not?" Roger asked, returning to his feet—and looking at Johnny.

            "Of course, I do.  I was raised an Episcopalian.  It's a piece of the consecrated Host—the Eucharist."

            "Correct.  Things that are truly holy, such as the Body and Blood of Christ, can remove the malice that is found in a person."

            "How so?"

            "How do you receive a piece of Communion, Johnny?"

            "You eat it."

            "Correct."

            "So what you're saying is, if a person infested with malice receives Holy Communion that malice inside will disappear?"

            "In some cases, yes.  Certainly other factors are involved."

            "Like what?"

            "How strong and how long the malice inside a person has affected their senses."

            "Wait a minute!  Are you saying that you knew this, when we fought my sister?"

            Roger nodded.

            "Then why the hell didn't you tell us?!"

            "Master, please calm down," Lenny said, trying to gesture to Johnny to lower his voice.  "You're inside a church."

            "It's all right, Lenny," Roger replied with a gesture indicating that he understood Johnny's anger.  "I blame myself a little on that one, Johnny, because I honestly didn't think of it.  You released the blue light of Earth, yet Grace, your sister, did not seem to react at all to it.   Certainly it's possible that Communion could have worked, but you would have had to calm her to the point where she would have received it.  And in trying to do so, she could have very easily killed you.  I think I was thinking more about your safety at the time, than I was the Eucharist.  And perhaps I failed you, but somehow I highly doubt it.  I think that if you would have tried the Eucharist, all of you would have been killed in the process."

            "So the same thing can happen with Shania?"

            "I don't really know.  If the light of the Earth can affect Shania, then I would say that the Eucharist will be effective.  But if not, then I would say that the answer is 'no.'"  Roger placed his arms behind his back and began to pace.  "Needless to say, there is a place I want to take you to."

            "A place?"

            Roger nodded.  "Domremy, France."

            "Domremy?!" replied Lenny.

            Again, Roger nodded.  "Yes, there are some people there who know quite a bit about malice."

            _"I just hope none of the villagers recognize me,"_ Lenny said.  _"I'm sure it's doubtful.  It's been almost 15 years, and I've changed a lot in those last 15 years."_


	3. We'll Have a Beer, When This is All Over

**Author's Notes:** Greetings, everyone! Well, I guess you survived the second chapter as well, but this chapter is quite a bit longer. I usually don't write chapters this long, but I just had a lot to write about. Oh, and there's something I want to point out. Whenever you read a character speaking, but the words are in _italics_ that means the character is talking inside his or her brain—that is to say, his or her thoughts. As always, please continue to read and give me critical reviews—I always love to know how to make a story better.

_Winds of love caress their faces.  
Angels hold their hearts.  
Smiling faces in the light.  
Pure and innocent hearts,  
shine in the dark._—

"Through the Times Part III"—Beto Vazquez

_We'll have a beer, when this is all over_—

Lenny Curtis to Yuri Hygua (_Shadow Hearts: Covenant_)

**Darkness and Light**

**Chapter III**

In the early hours of the morning, while Roger prepared the Bacon Jet for the take off to Domremy, Johnny stood outside Roger's home. A cold wind of sadness brushed past him, as Johnny observed the remains of a nearly 800 year old structure that stood on top of a cliff.

As Johnny watched the sun's rays sparkle on the ruins, he did not notice the door to Roger's house opening. "So here you are," Lenny said, as he stepped outside.

"Damn it!" Johnny said, startled. "Don't scare me like that."

"Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you." Lenny took a deep breath, and watched the air ascend out of his mouth. "Sure is cold this morning. I wouldn't be surprised if it snowed soon. It would be kind of nice, with Christmas coming and all."

Johnny nodded, but did not turn to Lenny. His eyes were still focused on the ruins. "I suppose so."

"What are you looking at anyway?"

"Those ruins up there," Johnny said, pointing. "I wonder what they used to be?"

"They're the ruins of what used to be Nemeton Monastery."

"Nemeton Monastery? Why would a bunch of monks build a monastery on top of a cliff like that?"

"That cliff didn't use to be there. In fact, if I remember correctly, I think it's possible for people to still walk to those ruins, just not as easy as it was 15 years ago."

"You seem to know a lot about that place, Lenny?"

"I know a little here and there."

"Will you tell me what you know?"

Lenny nodded. "Until just before the turn of the century that monastery had stood, more or less, as it had for centuries. However, it wasn't a monastery anymore, but rather, a private residence. The last owner of that place purchased a book called the Émigré Manuscript; you remember Roger telling you about that book, don't you?"

Johnny nodded. "It was the book that helped bring me out of a coma, or back from the dead—however, it was."

Lenny nodded. "Right. Well, the last owner of that place purchased that book from a man named Albert Simon, in hopes of bringing back his dead wife. Instead…"

"Wait! Who's Albert Simon?"

"He was a man who was once part of Sapientes Gladio, but was thrown out by Rasputin, and attempted to summon an alien being to confront Rasputin." Lenny paused. "But more on that later. Anyway, the former owner of that place," Lenny said, pointing, "purchased the Émigré Manuscript in hopes of bringing back his dead wife. Instead, what he brought back was a monster, and a great explosion happened inside that monastery that left it in its present state. It is possible to go inside the monastery, because a lot of its ruins are underground. However, that place is quite possibly the most evilest place on Earth."

"More evil than the Gate we had to enter?"

Crossing his arms over his chest and looking to the ground, Lenny replied, "Quite possibly." Returning to Johnny, he added, "Let me put it this way. If I had the chance to either take an acid bath or enter Neamton Monastery, I'd take the acid bath."

Johnny nodded. "That bad, huh?"

"That bad."

"You also said something about how until 15 years ago that cliff wasn't there. What happened?"

"That guy Albert Simon that I mentioned earlier."

"Yes?"

"He raised a temple into the sky, where he would summon that alien to crush Rasputin. But a man named Yuri Hyuga defeated him, and the temple fell from the sky, and crashed into the earth—shattering it. Now you know the origins of that cliff," Lenny said, gesturing to it.

"And who was this Yuri Hyuga?"

But before Lenny could answer, Roger appeared. "Ah, so here you are. Come now! Bacon Jet is ready. Let's go to France."

Johnny turned to Lenny—hoping that he would still answer his question.

"We'll talk later, Master. But I can tell you that we are going to the place where I first met him."

"Who?"

"Yuri."

* * *

The flight from Roger's house to Domremy took a little over two hours. Roger landed Bacon Jet in a meadow in the forest outside of Domremy. The forest was almost identical to the one outside of Roger's home, but as the three walked through the forest, flurries began to descend. "Told you this might happen," Lenny said to Johnny with a smile.

"Brings back some memories, doesn't it, Lenny?" Roger said.

"Yeah…Not any good ones, I have to say."

"Why's that?" asked Johnny.

"Do you remember me telling you about my role in Sapientes Gladio?"

"About how you were ordered to kidnap Roger?"

"That wasn't the only order I was given. My men and I were sent to this village to take care of Yuri, who I told you about before we left."

"Yeah, but you didn't say much about him, except that he defeated a man named Albert Simon."

"That's the least you need to know for now. Anyway, Nicholai was also here. He wanted to stab Yuri with something called the 'Holy Mistletoe,' something that he intended to use on Albert Simon. To make Yuri vulnerable, I held a little girl hostage." Lenny paused, and looked at the ground. "I didn't hurt that little girl, but she later died." And looking at the sky, Lenny added, "I don't know exactly what happened to her."

A moment after Lenny finished his sentence, the three came upon the village of Domremy. The village looked like a place that had not changed in 500 years. The homes reminded Johnny of houses he had seen from Tudor England, and everybody had to enter the village by crossing a bridge, where a small brook flowed below. On a hill, that overlooked the village, was the parish church.

"This place hasn't changed in 15 years," Lenny said. "I hope no one recognizes me, though."

"If they do, you can always deny it, Lenny," Roger said.

Lenny nodded. "That's probably what I'd do. It'd go better that way. By the way, Roger, who are you taking us to see?"

"You'll know soon enough."

Johnny and Lenny continued to follow Roger into the village, which had been decked out for Christmas. In the center of town were a large Christmas tree and a Nativity scene. The villagers looked at the three men as they passed by. Roger they had seen before, by Johnny and Lenny were new faces. _"If they recognize me, no one is saying anything yet,"_ Lenny said.

Eventually, Roger led Johnny and Lenny to a house, which looked relatively new—although it was built in a style that was similar to the village's older homes. Roger knocked on the door, and the door opened to reveal a man in his late thirties or early forties, with brown eyes and hair. The man was fairly tall and strong—he looked to be one who received plenty of exercise.

"Roger!" the man said. "This is certainly a surprise. What brings you here?" But the man's focus turned away from Roger to Lenny. The man stared at Lenny, for he appeared to be very familiar.

"Hello, Yuri," Lenny said.

"I thought as much," the man said with a smile.

"Lenny, is this him?" Johnny asked. "Who you were talking about earlier?"

"Yeah, this is him. Yuri Hygua, the man who crushed an alien—the godslayer!"

Yuri smiled. "That was 15 years ago. I've moved on since then." And turning to Johnny, Yuri added, "Who is this?"

"This is my young master, Johnny Garland."

"Young is certainly right!" Yuri chuckled. "Wait a minute, Lenny! Are you dressed as a butler?"

"Well…yeah. I told you I was his servant."

"We have a lot to talk about. Do come on in!" Yuri added, gesturing to Lenny, Johnny, and Roger.

The interior of the Hygua home did not feature anything that was out of the ordinary from what one might expect in a person's home. There were drapes, a kitchen, a dining room, a master room with a fireplace—that also had a Christmas tree and a Nativity scene, and an upstairs. However, two things inside a glass case did stand out to Johnny and Lenny. The first object was a pair of claws that were meant to be placed over a person's fists for fighting. The second object was a bike jacket, which contained the image of a split cross on its back. This object captured the interest of Lenny.

While Lenny continued to stare at the bike jacket, Johnny noticed a third object that was outside the glass case—a photograph. The photograph showed Yuri with his hand on the shoulder of a young girl. Next to Yuri was a very pretty woman holding a baby. The baby looked to be about a year old and a boy. Based on how Yuri looked in the photograph, and how he looks today, Johnny suspected that the picture was taken about ten years ago.

"So you kept the bike jacket?" Lenny said, gesturing to it.

"Yeah, it was of great help to me in that final battle."

"What exactly happened to you? I honestly thought you wouldn't still be around, due to that mistletoe's curse."

"We'll talk about that later. There is something that we're supposed to do."

"What's that?"

"You'll know soon enough. Until then, I have some people that I'd like you to meet." Turning to the stairs, Yuri said, "Alice, Jeanne, Zack, would you come down here please?"

On Yuri's command descended three people—a young woman, a teenage girl, and a boy. The boy slid down the banister, while the girls walked ever so lady-like.

"Let me introduce you to me family. First, this is my wife, Alice," Yuri said with a gesture to the young woman. Alice was a beautiful woman in her mid to late-thirties, with blonde hair and blue eyes. She wore a blue dress with matching bow, and around her neck was a small crucifix.

"Next," Yuri continued, also gesturing, "is my son, Zachary—or Zack, as we call him." Zachary Hygua was about 11 years old, and Johnny assumed that he was the baby Alice was holding in that picture. The boy looked like a younger version of his father, with the exception that his hair was red instead of brown.

"And finally," Yuri added, "here is my daughter, Jeanne."

_"Jeanne?!"_ Lenny said. _"Isn't that the name of that same girl?!"_

Johnny, however, was not focused on thoughts of the past. He was focused on Jeanne Hygua. Jeanne was either 14 or 15 years old, and was probably the mirror image of her mother, when she was the same age. Jeanne wore a blouse and a red skirt, and had a most beautiful smile.

_"She's gorgeous!"_ Johnny said.

"Let me now," continued Yuri, "introduce you to these two men. This one," Yuri said with a gesture, "is Lenny. We used to run around and fight each other, more or less, about 15 years ago."

"I'd say it was probably more than less, Godslayer!"

Alice chuckled. "Ah, yes, I think Yuri may have spoken about you."

Lenny smirked. "I bet Yuri has."

"And this other man," added Yuri with a gesture, "is his young master, Johnny…err…"

"Johnny Garland," Johnny said.

"Yeah, that's it! Johnny Garland."

"Nice to meet all of you," Johnny said.

_"Seems like a nice young boy,"_ Alice said.

_"I don't get how he can be the master to someone who is much older,"_ Zack said.

_"Hmm, he is kind of cute,"_ Jeanne said, smiling. _"I like his eyes and hair."_

"Alice," Yuri began, "there's a place I need to take Lenny to, and Roger you're more than welcome to come along. Jeanne? Zack?"

"Yes, Dad?" responded Zack.

"Yes, Daddy?" added his sister.

"I would like you two to show Johnny around the village."

"All right," the two said simultaneously.

"I need to run upstairs real quick," Jeanne said.

"Yeah, I do as well," added Zack.

As the siblings charged the stairs, Yuri put his hand on Johnny's shoulder. "Sorry you'll be travelling with the kid, but he's a good boy. I'm saying this, because I'm sure that you'd rather travel with my daughter, but I just hate to let the boy feel like he's not welcome."

"Oh, um, your son is more than welcome, Master Hygua…"

"No need for the "master," just Yuri will do."

"Anyway, I've had a lot of jobs that I've had to do for young kids back in New York."

"What kind of jobs?"

"I'm a detective…But occasionally, I get calls from the parents of young kids, asking me to find their lost pet."

Yuri chuckled. "Well, how nice of you. Anyway, I hope you enjoy your trip around our village."

"Are you ready to go?" Jeanne asked, while she descended the stairs with her brother.

"Um, yeah," Johnny said, having a hard time getting the words out. "Yes, absolutely!"

* * *

After Johnny left with Jeanne and Zachary Hygua, Yuri directed Lenny and Roger to St. Jehanne's, the village pub. Outside the bar, Yuri turned to Lenny and said, "Well, Lenny, this is what you owe me."

"Huh?"

Yuri chuckled. "You've forgotten, haven't you?"

"Forgotten what?"

"Yes, you apparently have. You said that we would have a beer together, when this was all over, and we've been waiting for almost 15 years."

Lenny laughed. "Yeah, I do remember that, now that you mention it."

"Well, come on then! Let's go in."

The interior of St. Jehanne's was dim, although there were some lights around the bar—that helped bring out the distinct color of the various liquors behind it—and along the walls. Near the bar was a portrait of Jehanne of Arc, whom the bar was named after; and at a table, a couple of men played cards and smoked cigars. "The place sure is dim," Lenny said. It had been a while since he had been to a place like St. Jehanne's. Not because it was French, but because it was legal to have a drink.

"They turn the lights on when it gets closer to evening," Yuri said.

Behind the bar stood the balding fifty-year-old proprietor, Jacques, whose family had operated St. Jehanne's for generations. "Ah, Yuri, welcome! It looks like you have a few guests with you. However, I recognize this man," Jacques said, pointing at Roger. "He's the man from Wales, right?"

"That's correct," Roger said.

"But this man," Jacques continued, pointing at Lenny, "I do not think that I have seen him before."

"The name's Lenny. I'm from America."

Jacques laughed. "Ah, but you speak perfect French. You can't originally have been from America, right?"

Lenny nodded. "Right, I'm originally from Switzerland."

"I do a lot of business indirectly with America," Jacques said, as the three men sat at the bar.

"Oh? What kind of business?"

"I sell some of my wine to a company in Canada. From there these 'bootleggers,' as they call themselves, buy the wine and sell it to their clients in America. I must say, I really don't know how a country can honestly believe that they are going to make people stop drinking. It just simply is not possible!"

Lenny chuckled. "Well, I'm in agreement with you. I think it's stupid that a bunch of teetollers out in Kansas think they're going to change the way the rest of the country thinks."

"Jacques," Yuri said, "I need a couple of beers. I take it that you have some?"

Jacques smiled. "Naturally."

"What kind do you like, Lenny?"

"Just a lager's fine."

"What about you, Roger?" continued Yuri. "You a beer person?"

"No, Yuri, I'm more of a wine person. I'll just have a Chardonnay."

"All right then, Jacques. It'll be two lagers and a Chardonnay."

"One moment please," replied the bartender.

As Jacques prepared the drinks, Lenny turned to Yuri. "Yuri?"

"Yes?"

"The name of your daughter, doesn't she have the same name as that girl I held so long ago?"

Yuri nodded. "Yes, I named her after Jeanne."

"Here you are," Jacques said, placing the drinks before his customers. "I think I'm going to go and play some cards with those guys over there. Let me know, if you need anything."

"Thank you, Jacques," Yuri said, as he paid him. And raising his bottle he added, "Cheers everyone! Here's to a journey 15 years ago." Lenny and Roger toasted Yuri, but Yuri had something else to add from his previous conversation. "Jeanne, that girl from 15 years ago, was a big help on my journey."

"Huh?" Lenny said.

"She resided in my heart after her death, and didn't go to Heaven, until she helped me discover what happiness truly was. That was how I was able to break the mistletoe's curse."

"Yuri?"

"Yeah?"

"There's one thing I want you to know."

"What's that?"

"That girl, I want you to know that I didn't kill her. And I honestly don't know who did. It's a part of my past I don't like to think about."

Yuri nodded. "I understand, Lenny, and I don't hold you responsible."

"Yuri?"

"Yes?"

"One other question."

"What's that?"

"What was happiness for you?"

"Living life my own way…Of course, I must admit that I did have one other thing happen."

"What's that?"

"Do you remember Kato?"

"Kato?"

"The envoy from Japan."

"...Oh, yeah! I think I remember him. He was almost always dressed in a navy officer's uniform."

"That's right. Anyway, Kato tried to perform a ritual found in the Émigré Manuscript to send us 100 years into the past. But we defeated him. However, he told us to pray for the world that we really wanted. My prayer was to go back to the first day I met Alice, and God granted that prayer to me."

"How did you eventually end up in Domremy?" Lenny asked, with a gulp.

Yuri turned to Roger. "Roger, why don't you explain?"

"Certainly. After the battle with Yuri's party, I began to wonder about them. It was sometime later that I bumped into Joachim, that wrestler from Romania, and he told me what happened after the battle with Kato. I decided that I would use the Émigré Manuscript to bring back those who would respond to it."

"You mean back from the dead?" asked Lenny.

"No. When the Émigré is used, there is a momentary change in the flow of time. If someone can respond properly, they can move through time. Yuri and Alice responded, and they moved from 1913 to 1915, and what makes it even better was that Yuri and Alice returned without any of their past ailments." Roger took a sip of his wine. "Of course, Yuri wasn't grateful for this."

"Not grateful? Why?" Lenny asked, turning to Yuri.

"He slapped me upside the head, for bringing them back," Roger added.

"The Émigré's not to be used!" Yuri said. "One tragedy after another follows everyone who uses that book. Granted it didn't happen, when Roger brought Alice and I from 1913 to 1915, but it could have happened. I remember one time I was simply going to take the book and burn it, but I couldn't."

"Why not?"

"Somehow someone got a hold of that book, and it found its way to America. New York, I think. Some doctor, I believe, got his hands on it. Who was his name, Roger?"

"Graham Garland."

"Yeah, that was it—hey, wait a minute! That master of yours, Lenny. Didn't you say his last name was Garland?"

Lenny took a gulp of his beer. "I did."

"Is he in anyway related to this Graham Garland?"

"Yes, but I would rather have the master tell you about that, when we discuss why were are here."


	4. Rainbow Eyes

**Author's Note:** Greetings, everyone! Sorry this has taken me a while to put up. I've been pretty busy for the last couple of days. This chapter is slightly shorter than my last chapter, but it does have some length to it, and will focus mostly on Johnny and Jeanne. As always, please continue to read and give me critical feedback.

_No sighs or mysteries,  
she lay golden in the sun.  
No broken harmonies.  
But I've lost my way.  
She had rainbow eyes_—

"Rainbow Eyes"—Rainbow

**Darkness and Light**

**Chapter IV**

"It stopped snowing," Johnny said, looking at the sky, while he walked with Jeanne, who had changed into a dress with stockings, and Zachary.

"It was snowing earlier?" Zachary said.

Johnny nodded. "Just flurries, nothing serious."

"I wish it would snow really hard!"

"Why's that?"

"Because I could go sledding! Do you ever go sledding, Johnny?"

"Not as much as I used to. I did a lot more, when I was younger. There were certain parks in the area where I grew up that you could slide down on when it snowed."

A moment after Johnny finished his sentence, he stopped walking. Something caught his attention. It was an elderly woman drawing water from the village well.

"What is it, Johnny?" Jeanne asked. "Why did you stop?"

"Now that's something you don't see every day," Johnny said, pointing at the old woman.

"What? Mistress Ames?"

"No. It's not her; it's what she's doing."

"You mean drawing water?"

Johnny nodded. "Yeah."

"What's so special about that, Johnny? Lots of people draw water from the well."

"Really?" Johnny said—he was truly stunned. "I've never seen a person draw water from a well before."

Now Jeanne and Zachary could not believe their ears.

"Really?" Jeanne said.

"Everyone has to use the well, unless they have water of their own," Zachary said. "We don't have to, because our Dad put in our own well. Do you have your own well too, Johnny?"

"No, not really, all our water comes from the city."

"You mean Paris?" asked Zachary.

"No, New York."

"Where's that?"

"It's a city in America."

"Is it like Paris?"

Johnny nodded. "It's similar, yes. There are lots of people in New York, who come from different countries, but it's different as well."

"How so?"

"Well…well, for one, it's illegal to have a drink in New York." Johnny chuckled. "Of course it's also illegal to have a drink anywhere in the country."

"You mean you can't have a glass of wine with your dad in New York?"

Johnny nodded.

"That's stupid! Me and my dad always have a glass of wine together in St. Jehanne's, here in the village."

"What?! Really?!" Johnny could not believe what he had just heard. Certainly it was illegal for him to drink in America, but that was partially due to that fact that it was illegal to drink in the country—period! But Zachary? He looked like he was maybe 10 or 11 years old. "How old are you, Zack?"

"11, why?"

"And you're able to drink at the bar?"

"If I go with my dad, yes."

"Wow! That's interesting."

"How old do you have to be to have a drink in your country, Johnny?" asked Jeanne.

"Well, usually it's 18, but that doesn't mean that people actually follow that law."

"How old are you, Johnny?"

Johnny paused. He was not sure what answer he wanted to give Jeanne. The answer that his birth certificate said or the answer that actually reflected his life experiences. Finally, he chose the age he was most comfortable with. "I'm 17." And pausing again he added, "How old do you have to be in this country?"

"If you can stand over the bar, they'll serve you."

"Really? I need to go to a place like that. Where is this St. Jehanne's?"

"It's right over there," Jeanne said, pointing.

"Care to stop over there for a drink? I'll buy you both one."

"I can't have a drink, unless my mom or dad is present," responded Zachary.

"I understand that, Zack, but I'm sure you can drink something else. Don't worry; we're just going to have one. And then, if your father comes into the bar in the evening, I'll go there with you, and I'll buy you a glass of wine. How about that?"

Zachary paused. "Okay then!"

* * *

When Johnny first entered St. Jehanne's his reaction was similar to Lenny's. "This place sure is dark."

"It's always like that," Jeanne said. "They turn on the lights more in the evening. This place is a lot of fun—especially when they have a band playing."

"Furthermore, it's legal," interjected Lenny, as he leaned back on his barstool, so Johnny would notice him. "Unlike in our country, the cops won't bust this place, because a bunch of teetollers in Kansas don't want people to drink."

"Lenny?! You're here?"

Lenny smiled. "Sure am. I'm fulfilling a promise that I made to Yuri 15 years ago. I told him that we would have a beer when everything from 15 years ago was over, and now we're finally having it."

"So did you finish your tour?" asked Yuri with a smile.

"Not yet, Daddy. Johnny said that he wanted to come and have a drink at St. Jehanne's, after we finished telling him about this place."

"Oh, is that right?" Yuri said, raising an eyebrow, perhaps to see if he could make Johnny nervous.

But if that was Yuri's intention, he failed. "That's correct, Yuri," replied Johnny. "I wanted to buy myself a beer, a glass of wine for Jeanne, and whatever kind of drink the bartender would serve Zack, without you being in his presence."

"And you were going to buy all of these drinks?" Yuri continued with the same look.

"Well, yes," responded Johnny, still not bothered by Yuri's gesture.

"Can I have a glass of wine, Dad?" asked Zachary.

"Oh, I suppose so," Yuri said with a smile, as he ran his fingers through his son's hair. "Jacques?"

"Yes, Yuri?"

"Would you get Zack and Jeanne a glass of wine, and Johnny whatever kind of beer that he wants."

"What kind of beer would you like, sir?" asked Jacques.

Johnny looked behind the bar. "Um?" And then he noticed the beer in front of Lenny. "Lenny, what kind of beer is that?"

"A lager."

Johnny nodded. "Okay, I'll have one of those."

"Certainly," Jacques said with a smile.

While Jacques prepared the drinks, Zachary turned to his father and said, "Dad, can we play pool?"

"Sure, Zack, but I think Johnny's going to want to continue the tour, after he and your sister finish their drinks."

"Johnny," Zachary began, as he walked over to him, "would you mind if I stayed in the bar, and played pool with my dad? Jeanne knows the village just as well as I do."

"Sure, that's no problem," Johnny said with a smile.

"I didn't think it would be," Yuri added, also with a smile.

"Daddy!" responded Jeanne, upset at her father's attempts to embarrass Johnny.

But Yuri's response to his daughter was to laugh.

* * *

After finishing their drinks, Johnny and Jeanne left St. Jehanne's to continue their journey through Domremy.

"That was nice of your dad, buying our drinks like that," Johnny said with a smile. "He didn't have to do that. I had the money to buy each of us a drink."

"He was trying to intimidate you, you know?"

Johnny chuckled. "Yeah, I know."

"He does that with a lot of guys who come around me."

"That's because you're a pretty girl, Jeanne." And with a smile he added, "And I think he knows that as well."

Jeanne blushed. "It's nice of you to say that."

Again, Johnny chuckled. "I'm just telling the truth." Continuing to smile at her, he added. "So, where are we going to now?"

For a moment, Jeanne forget the tour, due to Johnny's smile. "Oh! How about the meadow?"

"Sure, sounds great!"

The meadow was, as one might expect, an open field. In the spring and summer, daises covered its landscape, but in the winter it was barren—except for the grass that would exist regardless of the temperature.

"It's beautiful!" Johnny said, as he observed his surroundings—one of which included a hill that could be seen from the forest outside of Domremy. "This is a place I'd love to go to, if I ever wanted to get out of the city."

"Daddy told me that he used to come here years ago. This place simply helped him forget what was going on around him."

Johnny nodded. "Yeah, a place like this can sure do that."

Jeanne sat on a rock, and wrapped her arms around her legs, which also revealed some more of her stockings. "Are there places like this in New York?"

"I'm sure there are in the State of New York, but not in the city—at least not anymore. Maybe a couple hundred years ago, places like this existed, but they're all gone, due to the building that's taken place in the city."

Jeanne looked at the ground, before she turned back to Johnny. "While I would like to see some changes happen in Domremy, there are some things I hope never change."

"Like this meadow?" Johnny asked, gesturing.

Jeanne nodded. "Or the parish church," she added, pointing to it. "St. Jehanne of Arc was baptized in that church."

"Really?" Johnny said, turning to the church.

"Johnny?"

"Yeah?" Johnny said, turning back to her.

"I'm curious. What brought you to Domremy?"

"Well…it's a bit of a story."

"Would you tell me?"

Johnny looked at the ground, before he said, "All right. Well…"

"You can sit down, if you want," Jeanne interjected, gesturing Johnny to sit at the space next to her on the rock.

Johnny accepted the invitation. He found the rock to be cold, due to the flurries from earlier. But he did not mind, since his legs touched those of Jeanne. "A couple of months ago, my friends and I were on a mission to stop this person we called 'Lady,' but she was actually my sister Grace…"

"Why were you out to stop your sister?"

Johnny sighed. _"Do I really want to tell her about this? Well, I guess she's going to find out about this one way or another…_Do you remember how old that I told you and your brother I was?"

"Yeah, you're 17."

Johnny nodded. "Well, in terms of looks that's exactly right, but on paper I'm 22."

"Huh?"

"Years ago, I don't know when it was, something happened to me and my sister. I don't know exactly what it was, but it was an accident, and we were in a coma—and according to one source, we died."

"What?!"

Again, Johnny nodded. "I don't know if it's true or not, but if it is, our father found a way to bring us back."

"From a coma or death?"

"Let's just stick with a coma for now, because if I came back from the dead, I would think that I would have memories of Heaven or Hell, or wherever I was. Anyway, he used this book called the Émigré Manuscript to bring us back. It worked on me, but it didn't work on my sister."

"You mean she's still in a coma?"

"No, it brought her out of it, but her body became filled with malice."

"Malice?"

"The evil that exists in all of us. If one has too much malice in them, they basically become a monster."

Jeanne gasped. "And your sister became…"

Johnny nodded. "Yes, but we defeated her…But our victory was not without causalities."

"Causalities?"

Again, Johnny nodded. "A girl in our party, Shania, was given the kiss of malice by my sister. At first, it didn't affect her. But eventually, it took control of her mind." Johnny paused to look at the ground. "I couldn't protect her."

"Was she your girlfriend?"

Johnny turned to Jeanne. A week ago he might have answered 'yes' to Jeanne's question, but gazing into her blue saucers, his response was simply, "No, but I cared about her a lot."

"I see."

"The reason why Lenny and I are here is because Roger told us that your parents might be able to help us. That they might know something about malice."

Jeanne looked at the gray sky, and then returned to Johnny. "I don't know what they would know. But I do know that before I was born my parents used to be adventurous, so who knows what they might know, right?"

Johnny smiled and nodded. "Right." But as he completed his statement, snow began to descend. Slow at first, but then faster and faster. Standing from the rock, Johnny looked at the sky and chuckled.

"What is it?" Jeanne asked, also standing and staring at the sky.

"Watching the snow come down on us made me think of something," Johnny said, turning back to Jeanne.

Jeanne also turned back. "What's that?"

"This old man in New York, he once told me that if you're out with a pretty girl, when the snow first comes down on you that it's good luck. What kind of good luck it is, I don't know."

Jeanne giggled.

And Johnny smiled. "So, would you like to go back home, or should we have another drink at St. Jehanne's?"

Jeanne laughed. "Well, another drink would be nice, but I'm sure that Mom has supper ready. We can stop by later."

Johnny nodded. "All right then. Let's go back to your house."


	5. Coming Back to Life

**Author's Note**: Hey, everyone!  Yes, I know it's been a while since my last update, but I've been pretty busy.  I originally intended to make this chapter longer, but then I decided to break it up a little.  As always, continue to give me critical reviews—there's always places for improvement.

_Lost in thought, and lost in time.  
While the seeds of life and the seeds of change were planted.  
Outside the rain fell dark and slow,  
while I pondered on its dangerous but irresistible pastime.  
I took a heavenly ride through our silence.  
I knew the moment had arrived,  
for killing the past and coming back to life_—

"Coming Back to Life"—Pink Floyd

**Darkness and Light**

**Chapter V**

After a simple, but delightful supper, Zachary Hygua retired to his room to play with his toys and read his science fiction novels, while Yuri, Alice, Jeanne, Johnny, Lenny, and Roger gathered in the master room to drink beer and wine.  As the wood cracked in the fireplace, Johnny retold the story that he told Jeanne a few hours ago—about his encounter with the Émigré Manuscript, his sister, and Shania.

            Yuri took a gulp of his beer and said.  "I see.  So you're trying to help this girlfriend of yours, this Shania?"

            "She's not my girlfriend," Johnny said, looking briefly at Jeanne.

            On the words 'she's not my girlfriend,' Lenny raised his eyebrows.  Knowing his master as well as he did, Lenny was aware that Johnny had referred to Shania as his girlfriend a few times in the past. 

            "But she's a good friend," continued Johnny.  "And, yes, I want to help her."

            "Yuri," Roger began, "perhaps you could explain your history with malice.  I think it would be of great help for Johnny."

             "My history with malice," began Yuri, while he paused to take a gulp of his beer, "I think my history with malice began in the fall of 1913, when I was 23 and in China.  I was guided by this voice to help Alice…"

            "Guided by this voice?" asked Johnny.

            Yuri nodded.  "Yeah.  The voice belonged to a British woman named Koudelka.  She had the power of telepathy.  I kind of wonder where she's at now."  Yuri took another gulp.  "Anyway, when I was born, I was born with the power of fusion.  It's a power that allows me to take on the forms of monsters that I've conquered."

            "Shania had a very similar ability," Roger interjected, looking at Johnny, "if you remember how she was able to change into certain spirits that she contacted from shrines."

            "Really?!" Yuri said.  "So this Shania person had the power of fusion as well?"

            "More or less, she wasn't able to gain a monster's ability that same way that you are, but she was still able to morph into the spirit of a particular shrine that she visited."

            "So what you're saying is that she had to visit this particular shrine for her to gain a fusion power?"

            "Right."

            "I thought that fusion was a forbidden art, and that only those with Japanese blood had it?"

            "Obviously not."

            Yuri took another drink.  "Still, it would be a pain in the ass to have to visit all of those shrines.  But I wouldn't mind meeting this woman, if I ever had the chance."

            "Hopefully you will, Yuri," Johnny said.  "But I think we're getting off track.  Could you please return to your story?"

            "Certainly.  Like I told you, I have the power of fusion, but when I was younger, it was a power that I feared.  I was afraid that one day I was going to turn into a monster and not be able to turn back.  And this fear led up to the god of death being created in my mind.  Or at least I thought it was the god of death.  It was actually my own weakness that I couldn't conquer.  Alice helped me conquer it, but she took on the burden of my malice, and died in her sleep."

            "Died in her sleep?!" Johnny and Jeanne said.

            "But she's right there!" added Johnny, pointing.

            Yuri gestured Johnny to lower his voice.  "Relax, Johnny.  It'll be explained shortly."

            "It is true, however," interjected Alice.

            "Mom?"

            Alice smiled.  "I told your father, shortly after you were born, that I didn't want you to ever know about this—and the same goes for your brother.  But it is true, I did die from taking on your father's malice, and the events that proceeded afterward, I watched from Heaven—but my father told me that my time would be short."

            "Your father?" asked Jeanne.

            Alice maintained her smile, and she nodded.  "Yes, and he really liked your father."

            Yuri retuned the smile, before he added, "I think we should continue on."  He took the last gulp of his beer and said, "After I lost Alice, I ended up here with her uncle, Gepetto, and…"

            "How did you meet him?" interjected Johnny.

            "I met him in Zurich, which is where Alice and I intended to go.  After her death, I travelled with her uncle, who was recovering from the loss of his wife.  We ended up in Domremy, and that's when I met the members of the group Lenny was a part of—Sapientes Gladio."

            "Yeah, Lenny told me all about them," Johnny said.  "About him, Gregory Rasputin—who advised the tsar, and this guy called Nicholai."

            Yuri nodded.  "While Lenny held this girl from the village, Jeanne, hostage, Nicholai stabbed me with this thing called the 'Holy Mistletoe.'"

            "Lenny told me about the Holy Mistletoe thing, but he didn't say anything about this Nicholai stabbing you."

            "Well, he did, and that caused the malice to reenter my body."

            While Johnny and Yuri conversed, Lenny looked at the floor.  All these bad memories reentered his mind.  He saw himself holding the girl hostage, with a large dagger under her chin—threatening to stab her.  And then, he saw… the memories began to make him sweat.  "Would you excuse me, Yuri?" Lenny interjected, while he wiped the sweat from his brow.

            "Where are you going, Lenny?"

            "I just need some fresh air."

            "Is it too hot in here for you, Lenny?" asked Johnny.

            Lenny shook his head.  "I think I'm just having a hot flash.  I've been starting to have them more, as I get older.  Just a little walk outside will do me good.  Master?"

            "Yes?"

            "Please tell me everything that I missed."

            Johnny nodded.  "All right, Lenny."

            As Lenny left the Hygua home, Johnny could not help but worry about him.  _"I've never known Lenny to have hot flashes.  I wonder if something else isn't wrong with him?"_

            "That girl, Jeanne, I mentioned," continued Yuri, "she was the one who helped me overcome my malice."

            "How so?"

            "After she was killed by the secret society, that would be Sapientes Gladio, her soul remained inside of me for a short time.  I think God must have wanted her to help me.  I think it was part of His plan to help me reunite with Alice.  She told me that the way to beat the mistletoe's curse was for me to discover what happiness truly is."

            "And what is happiness for you, Daddy?"

            "Happiness for me, Jeanne, is living life my own way.  But I would say, since that time, my happiness has changed."

            "How so?"

            "Happiness isn't just living life my own way.  It's also living for you, your brother, and your mother."

            Jeanne smiled.

            So did Yuri.

            "Um," Johnny began—breaking up a family moment, "that's an interesting story, but there are still some things that I don't understand."

            "Like what?"

            "Well, first, how did Alice end up coming back to life?"

            "Oh, that!  Yeah, I guess that's something I ought to explain.  Well, besides finding my happiness, I had to stop someone from destroying the world."

            "Destroying the world?"

            Yuri nodded.  "Yes, a friend of mine, named Kato, wanted to send us back in time.  He was angry by the tragedies that happened in his life, and he wanted to send our world 100 years back in time.  But my friends and I prevented him from doing so.  After his defeat, Kato told us that we should pray for the world that we wanted…And I hope that he did as well.  My only prayer was to go back and be with Alice.  God granted me that prayer, and I was sent back to China in the year 1913, when Alice and I first met.  When her and I met, we were without any of our ailments.  However, Roger," and Yuri gestured to him with a look, "decided to use the Émigré's power to transport us forward to the year 1915.  We entered this world without any ailments, but I still slapped Roger upside the head!"

            Jeanne laughed.

            But Roger turned to her with a glare, before he turned to Yuri.

            Johnny, confused at why Yuri would do such a thing asked, "Why did you do that?"

            "Because the Émigré Manuscript is not something to be messed with.  Yes, we came back safely, and thank God for that, but things could have easily gone wrong—look at what happened to your sister.  Yes, I know things worked okay for you, but…"

            "They could have easily gone wrong?"

            Yuri nodded.  "Exactly."

            "Well, I still have one more question."

            "What's that?"

            "I still don't understand how I can help Shania."

            Yuri smirked.  "Then you didn't catch the main theme of my story."

            "I guess not.  What is it?"

            "It's willpower, Johnny.  Malice can be conquered, if someone has the will to conquer it."

            "But I don't know how to help Shania in that sense.  I don't even know where she is."

            "My aunt should be able to help you."

            "Your aunt?"

            "Yes, my Aunt Saki.  She lives in Inugami Village.  Also living there is my cousin, Kurando; his wife, Anastasia; and their three young children.  I'll write a letter of introduction for you.  Also, Roger tells me that you used the blue light of Earth to counter the red light of malice?"

            "That's correct."

            "Aunt Saki should be able to help you locate where there's another blue light of Earth."

            "Thank you, Yuri, but where is this Inugami Village."

            "It's in Japan, outside of Mt. Katsuragi—also known as the 'Forest of Wind.'"

            "Thanks again, I'm sure we will probably leave tomorrow."

            "Johnny?" Jeanne began.

            "Yes?"

            "We never did complete that tour.  There's still one more place I want to show you."

            "Jeanne, it's late," her father said.

            "It's just the church, Daddy.  Besides, Johnny said he wanted to go back to St. Jehanne's."

            Yuri nodded.  "Very well."  But with a look he added, "Come back home sober!"

            "Daddy!"

            "Wait!" Johnny began.  "Lenny!  I'm surprised he hasn't come back yet."

            "Yeah, I'm kind of surprised by that too," Yuri said.

            "Yuri?"

            "Yes?"

            "As we were coming into Domremy, Lenny talked about that incident where he held that girl hostage, and that she later died.  Lenny said that he didn't kill her, and I don't believe that he would lie to me, but is that true?"

            Yuri placed his hands on his hips and looked at the floor.  "I didn't see who killed Jeanne, but I believe that Lenny told me the truth, when he said that he didn't kill her."       

 


	6. Repentance

**Author's Note**: Hey, everyone!  Yeah, it's been a little while, since I've had an update, but things—as usual—get in the way.  Originally, I was going to make this a longer chapter, but when I saw where I was in terms of length, I thought that I should divide the two up.  I am glad that I have received some feedback so far.  It is always good to hear from people.  And let me point out that I can take criticism, so long as the person explains exactly what is wrong.  With that being said, I again ask that those who read will give me some critical reviews. 

_Jesus Christ,  
have mercy on me,  
a sinner_—

"The Jesus Prayer"—(Ancient Christian Prayer)

**Darkness and Light**

**Chapter VI**

Upon opening the front door of the Hyuga home, Johnny and Jeanne noticed the footprints of Lenny on the steps.  But after leaving the steps, the footprints of Lenny were nowhere to be found—they were lost in the blanket of snow.  The snow was still descending, although not quite as hard as it was earlier in the day.  Johnny and Jeanne were faintly able to make out the moon, and the light from homes and city streets provided them with some extra light.

            "I wish that I could follow Lenny's footprints," Johnny said.  "Hot flash or not, he should have been back by now."

            "You care about him a lot, don't you?"

            "Yeah, he's not just my butler; he's also my friend."

            "How long have you known him?"

            "Wow!" Johnny said, placing his hand to his forehead.  "I'm not sure exactly.  Me and my dad first met him in Europe, and I think it must have been shortly after the end of the Great War, so guessing late 1918 or early 1919…I guess that means that I've known Lenny for about ten years."

            "Well, I'm kind of worried about him too.  I hope that being in the cold air too long with his hot flash doesn't cause him to get sick."

            "That's the thing, Jeanne, I've never known Lenny to have a hot flash.  That makes me wonder if something else isn't going on inside his mind."

            "What do you think it is?"

            "…I don't know."

            As Johnny completed his sentence, he was able to look up and see the shadowy image of the parish church.  Although the exterior of the church was a mostly a shadow, with the exception of the cross on the steeple that cast a shadow in the snow, light could be seen shinning through the stained glass images—probably due to the prayer candles.

            "Just the way the church looks at night made me think of something," Johnny said.

            "What's that?"

            "There are some pretty bad areas in New York, like there are in any major city, and it seems like the once place that is safe in those areas are the churches.  Just the way it looks tonight, the church looks like a safe haven."

            Jeanne smiled.

            "I never did ask, but what's the name of that church?"

            "St. Remigius.  Are you Catholic, Johnny?"

            "No, I'm Episcopalian."

            "What's that?"

            "It's the Anglican Church in the United States."

            "That name sounds familiar.  Is that the Church of England?"

            "The very one!" Johnny said, smiling.

            "Ah, okay.  Have you ever been inside a Catholic church before, Johnny?" Jeanne asked, while the two stood outside the church's iron door, which appeared to be about two hundred years younger than the stone building it was attached to.

            "Sure.  There are hundreds of Catholic immigrants in New York."

            "Are they much different from the church that you belong to?"

            Johnny chuckled.  "Not really, but we don't we go on inside?"  Taking his fingers to his hair, and feeling it stick together, Johnny added, "It's freezing out here.  My hair is beginning to have ice form over it!"

            Jeanne giggled, while she took her fingers to her hair.  Her hair was moist, but not frozen. "I guess I just have Mom's blood.  I've seen her go outside in a skirt with only stockings to protect her legs in the dead of winter."

            Johnny grinned.  _"Hmm, I wonder how Jeanne would look dressed exactly the same?"_

            "What are you grinning at?"

            Johnny immediately stopped grinning.  "Oh, nothing, sorry."

            Jeanne, however, seemed to know what Johnny was thinking, as she opened the door to the old church.  The interior was 'pitch black,' obviously due to very little light.  Most of the light came from the prayer candles, but even inside that dark church, Johnny was able to make out some of its interior.  A statue of Christ stood in front of the prayer candles.  Along the walls were pictures of the Stations of the Cross and a portrait of the Holy Family.

            "How old is this church?" Johnny asked.

            "It's nearly 600 years old."

            Johnny heard Jeanne's answer, but he gestured for her to wait.  Something pierced his ears.

            "What is it?"

            "We're not the only ones in this church.  Someone else is here."

            Maintaining the same gesture, Johnny tried to hear whatever it was he heard earlier.

            "Our Father," began a deep voice, "who art in Heaven, hallowed be thy name.  Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on Earth as it is in Heaven.  Give us this day our daily bread.  And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who have trespassed against us.  And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.  Amen."

            "That's Lenny praying."

            "You sure?" Jeanne asked, while the man praying began to recite the Hail Mary.

            Johnny nodded.   "Yeah, I'd know that voice anywhere.  But this is weird.  I've seen Lenny pray, but I don't know why he'd chose to do so in a church so late at night.  Something's going on."

            Johnny gestured for Jeanne to follow him, while he followed the sound of Lenny's voice, who was now reciting the Doxology.

            Lenny sat in a pew at the front of the church—near the statue of the Virgin Mary, holding the infant Christ.  Lenny recited the "Oh, my Jesus" prayer, and did not appear to be aware of the presence of either Johnny or Jeanne, who now sat next to him.  "Save us from the fires of Hell," he continued, "lead all souls to Heaven, especially those in most need of thy mercy.  Amen."  Lenny crossed himself, but when he turned his head, he gasped.  "Master?!  What are you doing here?"

            "Jeanne wanted to show me this church.  She said this was the church were St. Jehanne of Arc was baptized."

            "Oh, is that right?" Lenny said.

            "Yes, that's right," responded Jeanne.

            "But what are you doing here, Lenny?" asked Johnny.

            "What?  You know that I like to say my prayers at night."

            "Yes, but you often don't do so in a church."

            "Well, no, but I was out walking, and I just decided to come into the church.  What's wrong with that?"

            "Nothing, but I've never known you to have hot flashes.  Are you sure something else isn't on your mind?"

            "N-no, it's…"

            Johnny shot Lenny a look.

            Lenny sighed.  "Okay, there is something."

            "What?"

            "This is the place where that incident happened."

            "That incident?"

            Lenny nodded.  "With that girl.  It was here in this church that I held her with a dagger beneath her throat.  And it was here in this church that I watched her die."

            Lenny turned to the floor.

            "Lenny," Johnny began, "did you…?"

            "No!  I didn't kill her, but I saw her die."

            "What happened?" asked Jeanne.

            Lenny looked at the ceiling, sighed, and returned to the altar.  "I take this as part of my penance.  It happened on the day that Nicholai and I confronted Yuri.  In this church that day it was Nicholai, myself, Yuri, and this German lieutenant named Karin, who was originally brought in by Nicholai to help him get into the church.  Karin, of course, knew nothing about what was really going on.  I remember holding that girl, but Karin fired a shot into the air that took me by surprise, and caused me to drop that girl.  She ran.  However, there was too many of us too keep her from exiting the church.  Nicholai went to attack Karin, and although Yuri knocked him away, he was able to stab him with the Holy Mistletoe, and this light engulfed the church."

"Dad mentioned about being stabbed by this thing called the 'Holy Mistletoe' earlier, but I never did ask him what it was," Jeanne said.

"It was apparently a device that could defeat any opponent by killing their thoughts and their memory."

"This light that engulfed the church, you said," responded Johnny.  "What kind of light was it?"

"I can't quite describe it, but I think it was malice entering Yuri's body."

            "Was it red?" asked Johnny.

            "…I think it was.  Maybe it was a mixture of red and white.  I just can't remember.  But what I do remember was Yuri falling to the ground unconscious, and the light knocking back Karin as well.  Then the next thing I knew this old man entered the church with this wolf.  I think that the wolf was the pet of that girl, but he ended up following Yuri throughout his mission against us."

            "Was the wolf's name Blanca?" asked Jeanne.

            "I don't know.  It was a white wolf…"

            "That's definitely Blanca.  He ended up in Inugami Village, and Mom and Daddy used to take us to see him."

            "That's probably him," Lenny said.  "Anyway, that old man helped pull Yuri and Karin out of that church, while the wolf was going to rescue the girl.  The wolf lunged at Nicholai, but Nicholai kicked him in the jaw, and he fell back unconscious.  Then that girl ran over to that wolf.  Comforting him—trying to find a way to get him to get back up.  That's when I saw Nicholai with his sword drawn.  I could tell he was going to stab the wolf, but where that girl was, I knew he would end up stabbing her.  I remember asking for him to wait, because I knew he would end up stabbing the girl.  But he told me to shut up, and even though I could have easily pushed him out of the way, and saved that girl, I did nothing."

            Once again, Lenny looked at the floor.

            "And he stabbed the girl?" asked Johnny.

            Lenny nodded.

            "And he killed her?" added Jeanne.

            Again, Lenny nodded.

            "That wasn't your fault, Lenny," Johnny said.

            "Maybe not, but…I always thought that there was something I could have done to save her, but I was just blindly following orders.  I can't believe how many stupid things I did in the name of the society.  I did things, without even questioning if it was right or wrong."

            "But I can see how sorry you are," Jeanne said, with a hand on Lenny's shoulder, "and I believe that God has forgiven you."

            Lenny turned to her.  "I know God has forgiven me, but this is part of my penance."

            "Penance?" Johnny asked.

            Lenny nodded.  "When I confessed years ago, the priest thought I was crazy—talking about a secret society and such.  But he told me that if I ever did get the chance to return to the spot where all of this happened, I should say a prayer for that girl.  I'm doing that now, even though Yuri told me that the girl has gone to Heaven."  Lenny looked at the stained glass images above the altar that showed Jesus and God the Father crowning Mary as Queen of Heaven.  "It's really no longer necessary," he said, looking back at Johnny and Jeanne, "but I'm doing it anyway.  But what about you two?  I seriously doubt that you're going to remain in the church all night."

            "I was just about to take Johnny somewhere," Jeanne said.

            "Take me somewhere?" Johnny replied.  "Where to?"

            "Ohh!" Jeanne said, while she slapped Johnny on the back.  "To St. Jehanne's, you idiot!"

            "Ow!  Damn!" Johnny said, as he poked Jeanne's tummy.

            She giggled.

            _"So that's why he didn't say Shania was his girlfriend,"_ Lenny said with a smile.  _"I'll have to ask about this later."_

            "Yes, I'm ready to go," Johnny said.  "Care for a drink, Lenny?"

            "Eh?"

            "Yeah, a drink will do you some good."

            "Besides," Jeanne added, "I think they will have music tonight."

            "Well, okay, I'll go with you for a little bit."


	7. Recreation

_Raise your hats,  
and your glasses too,  
we will dance the whole night through.  
We're going back to a time we knew,  
under a violet moon_—

"Under a Violet Moon"—Blackmore's Night

_You're racing like a fireball,  
dancing like a ghost_—

"Fireball"—Deep Purple

**Darkness and Light**

**Chapter VII**

When Johnny, Jeanne, and Lenny left the church, it had ceased snowing, and the clouds parted to reveal the moon—a violet moon.

"Wow!" Lenny said. "Look at the moon! It sure is gorgeous tonight."

"Yeah, it sure is pretty," Johnny said. "But somehow, it seems kind of feminine."

"Hey!" Jeanne said with a slap to Johnny's arm. "What do you mean by that?"

"Just that it's feminine," Johnny replied with a smile, and a poke for her tummy.

Jeanne giggled.

_"Now I definitely know why he didn't say anything earlier,"_ Lenny said. _"Either he's been smitten by Yuri's daughter, or she's been smitten by him."_

* * *

The interior of St. Jehanne's was drastically different from earlier in the day. All the lights were on, a band was playing, and patrons danced and waved their beer mugs. With all the lights on, Johnny and Lenny were able to see some of the bar's interior that they missed earlier in the day. But what stood out most to them was the portrait of an almost nude French model holding a glass of wine. Johnny and Lenny smiled.

"What are you two smiling at?" asked Jeanne.

"Oh, nothing," Johnny said, while he maintained his smile.

"Oh, I bet!"

A moment after Jeanne finished her sentence, the band played another tune—an American tune. Johnny recognized the tune immediately. It was a tune from Louis Armstrong. "I know this song!" Johnny said. "It's a jazz tune from Louis Armstrong called 'A Kiss to Dream On.' They play it all the time at this nightclub in New York."

"Care to dance to it, Johnny?" asked Jeanne.

"Well…"

"Well, what?"

"That's a problem. I can't dance."

"Eh?" Jeanne said, cocking her head.

"Maybe if I had one drink first…"

"Come on! The song will be over by then."

"Oh, all right," Johnny said, while he took Jeanne's hand and let her lead him to the dance floor.

From the bar, Lenny sipped on a glass of blended whiskey on the rocks, and watched Johnny and Jeanne dance. Lenny smiled. His young master was right; he could not dance, but Lenny saw something in Johnny—he smiled. Johnny may not have been able to dance, but he smiled, and so did Jeanne. _"I almost hope that Shania didn't have the same feelings toward Master that he did towards her, because while she may get cured from the malice, I think she might find herself suffering from heartbreak."_

After the song ended, Johnny and Jeanne held hands and walked back to the bar.

"Hey, Lenny," Johnny began, "how come you didn't get me or Jeanne a drink?"

"Because neither of you asked."

"I take it that you'd like a glass of wine, Jeanne?" asked Johnny.

But before Jeanne could answer, the band started another tune—one that seemed to reminisce the French countryside.

"Oh, this is a great song!" Jeanne said.

"Yeah, I know," added Lenny. "I remember hearing this song, growing up in Switzerland."

"Care to dance, Lenny?" asked Jeanne.

"Uh, sure," he replied—stunned that a 14-year-old girl would ask him to dance.

From the bar, Johnny drank a lager, and watched his butler and friend dance with the beautiful Jeanne. Unlike himself, Lenny was a good dancer. _"I almost feel embarrassed watching how good Lenny dances, compared to how bad I dance."_

After the song, Jeanne and Lenny returned to the bar.

"What's this?" Jeanne said. "You couldn't get me a glass of wine?"

"You didn't tell me what you wanted," Johnny replied with a smile. "You ran off, and danced with Lenny instead."

Lenny chuckled.

And Jeanne gave Johnny a look. But all Johnny did was maintain his smile. Eventually, Jeanne laughed as well.

"Say, Jacques," Johnny began, turning to the bartender, "that was your name from earlier, right?"

"That's right. It's been 'Jacques' for about 50 years," Jacques said with a smile. "And I remember that you're the American that came in with Jeanne and Zack."

"That's right! Could you give Miss Jeanne here," Johnny said, gesturing, "a glass of whatever kind of wine she likes?"

"Miss Jeanne?" a woman's voice said.

Johnny, Lenny, and Jeanne turned. The voice belonged to a petite woman, who looked to be in her late twenties or early thirties with auburn hair, blue eyes, and wearing a red dress.

"That's pretty funny," the woman continued, "for you to call her that, since I can still remember when she was born."

"Oh, hi, Cateline!" Jeanne said.

"I saw you earlier, dancing with the American," Cateline said, gesturing to Johnny. "But who is this fellow you were dancing with just a few minutes ago?" she asked, pointing to Lenny. "He's a really good dancer."

"The name's Lenny," Lenny said with a smile. "And thank you for the compliment."

"My pleasure," she said, returning the smile. "I can tell by your accent that you're certainly not American. Where are you from?"

"Well, I'm from America, but I'm originally from Switzerland."

"I see."

But as Lenny finished his sentence, the band began a new number, which was a reminiscence of traditional French dance songs.

"Oh, I love this song!" Cateline said. "I used to dance to this song in this bar back before the war began. Care to dance with me?" she asked, looking at Lenny.

"Uh, sure," Lenny replied—a little surprised that such a pretty girl would be asking him to dance. "No problem."

Cateline took Lenny by the hand, and led him to the dance floor, while Johnny and Jeanne watched from the bar.

"Who's that?" Johnny asked, pointing.

"That's Cateline Byington. She's originally from this village, but she left sometime after the Great War ended for Rouen." Jeanne paused to watch Lenny and Cateline dance. "It looks like she's letting her hair down tonight. I'm glad to see it."

"How come?"

"Well, this may sound weird, but I don't think she ever got over the death of her boyfriend."

Johnny squinted. "I don't get it. What's so weird about that?"

"Well, her boyfriend enlisted in the army during the Great War. She didn't want him to enlist, but it was a quick way for him to make money. As I heard it, he proposed to her, and asked for her to wait for him." Jeanne took a sip of her wine. "But in October, just before the war ended, he was killed."

Johnny looked at the ground, before he turned back to Jeanne. "That sucks."

"Yeah, it does. Cateline was crushed, when she got the news, and for some reason Domremy just seemed to hold too many memories of him, so she fled for the city."

"In this case, Rouen?"

Jeanne nodded. "Yes, in this case, Rouen." Jeanne took another sip. "She came back to the village about a year ago, but the villagers often said that she still seemed to act like she was in mourning. But watching her dance with Lenny, it seems like she's finally let go of her past and becoming free. Still, I guess it just seems weird to me, to mourn for ten years. I would assume that she would have moved on by then."

Johnny took a gulp of his beer, but he did so mostly as a distraction. He did not want to respond to Jeanne right away. Jeanne's story made him think of Shania. _"I was in love with Shania. Maybe it was lust, but I certainly cared about her. And now since I came to this village all my thoughts have been on Jeanne. Is that wrong? I don't know. I mean, I never was exactly dating her and…"_

"Johnny? You sure are quiet. Is something wrong?"

Johnny shook his head—snapping back to reality. "Oh, sorry, I just got distracted watching Lenny and that girl dance. Lenny's a good dancer, but I don't know how I could have let them distract me—considering that I've had my eyes on you most of the evening."

Jeanne playfully punched Johnny.

And Johnny responded by grabbing Jeanne's waist, and pulling her close. "Hey, quit that!" he said jokingly.

Jeanne giggled, while she let a finger run against Johnny's rear.

Johnny smiled. However, he motioned Jeanne next to him, wrapped an arm around her waist, and locked his free hand into hers. Again from the bar, he watched Lenny and Cateline dance. "There is one thing I can say, Jeanne."

"What's that?"

"If she is still mourning, Lenny's giving her a brief moment of happiness. Just look at the look on her face."

Jeanne watched Cateline laugh, which caused her to smile. "True." Using her free hand to grab her wine, Jeanne took a sip. "You know, Johnny, I never did ask you this, but where are you and Lenny staying? I don't believe that you're staying with us."

"You know, that's a damn good question. I honestly don't know, and I can't believe that I never did ask myself that question. Where's the closest inn?"

"Right here," Jeanne said, pointing to the floor. "Besides this place being the village tavern, this place is also an inn."

"Well, I'd say the chances are probably pretty good that we'll be staying here. However, I'll have to ask Lenny, when he comes back."

As the song ended, and Lenny and Cateline walked back to the bar; Cateline said to Jeanne with a smile, "I saw how you had your arms all wrapped around him."

Jeanne giggled, while she held Johnny close, and smacked him on the ass.

Johnny turned red, while he grabbed Jeanne and teasingly said, "Quit that!" before he also smacked her on the ass.

Now it was Jeanne who turned red.

"Lenny," Johnny began, while he held Jeanne's hand, "I can't believe I never asked this, but where are we staying? Jeanne told me that this place also has an inn, so I guess we can get rooms here?"

"Na," Lenny said, gesturing, "we're staying at Yuri's—me, you, and Roger. While you were out with Jeanne, Yuri made me the offer, and we accepted. I guess I never got around to telling you."

Jeanne looked at Johnny and giggled, while he smiled.

"But," Lenny began, smiling, "I don't think that Yuri is going to allow you to share his daughter's bedroom."

"Lenny!" Jeanne said.

Lenny laughed

So did Cateline.

While Johnny simply maintained his smile.


	8. Time for Reflection

**Author's Note**: Greetings, everyone! Yes, it's been a while, but things often get in the way. I thought about making this chapter longer, but at ten pages I'm going to stop for a while. As always, I ask you to continue to give me critical reviews. It helps with the writing.

_When the sun sets over cherry blossom skies,  
and the twilight fills the air.  
You can see the snow on the mountain tops,  
through the veil of old Japan_—

"Benzai Ten"—Blackmore's Night

**Darkness and Light**

**Chapter VIII**

Johnny did not know what time it was, when he opened his eyes. But he could tell it was not yet dawn by how dark the sky was. He rested on the couch in the Hygua master room, and the only light available for him was the moon and the fire from the fireplace. Johnny took a moment to watch the embers crack. He hoped that the cracking embers might help him sleep.

"Jeanne," Johnny whispered. When he, Jeanne, and Lenny came back from St. Jehanne's, he and Jeanne stayed up and talked, while Lenny went to bed. Johnny's and Jeanne's topics ranged from music, his favorite memories in New York, and her favorite memories in Domremy. But it was the goodnight kiss that stood out in Johnny's mind. "She's a damn good kisser!" he added, but also in a whisper.

Johnny returned his thoughts to the fire, until he heard the sound of someone descending the stairs. Turning to the staircase, he saw Jeanne wearing a pink nightgown that did little to hide her attractive figure.

Noticing that Johnny was awake, she smiled. "I thought you were talking in your sleep."

Johnny prepared to lift himself up.

But she motioned him to lie still. "Don't get up. I just came down here to get a drink of water, and I don't want to wake everybody else up."

Johnny, however, could not keep his eyes off of Jeanne. But an object stopped him this time—a wall. Johnny could hear Jeanne, but he could not see her, until she returned with a glass in her hand. He smiled.

Jeanne returned the smile. "When do you leave tomorrow?"

"I don't know—probably after breakfast."

"Then you'd better get some more sleep. There are only a few more hours until dawn," she said, while she kissed Johnny on the forehead, and ran her fingers through his hair. "There's a part of me that would love to come with you," she added.

"There's a part of me that would love for you to come with me as well. But I can just imagine the fight me and your dad would have over that idea."

Jeanne chuckled. "You're probably right."

"But you're right, Jeanne. I should get some more sleep. But before I do…"

"Yes?"

Johnny motioned Jeanne to come closer, and as she did, he gave her a quick kiss. "Goodnight, Jeanne."

* * *

A few hours later, at eight in the morning, Johnny, Lenny, Roger, and the Hygua family had a simple, but delightful, breakfast of pancakes and scrambled eggs. Once Yuri finished eating, he turned to his former foe and said, "Lenny?"

"Yeah?"

"I've got something for you."

"What's that?"

"A letter for you to give my cousin, Kurando."

"What for?"

"I wanted to explain to him the reason for your visit to Japan. I thought it would be easier for me to explain it, then you, because he doesn't know you all that well." Yuri smiled. "And I thought that it would just be nice to say 'hello' to him."

Lenny smirked. "Fine, do you have the letter?"

"Of course," Yuri said, grabbing the letter from the top of a cabinet.

"Thanks," Lenny said, after he received the letter from Yuri. And turning to Johnny, he added, "Master, I think we should get going. It's going to be a long flight."

Through the blanket of snow, Johnny, Lenny, and Roger walked with the Hyguas. Johnny and Jeanne walked next to each other, but they did not hold hands. The presence of Jeanne's father kept them apart.

"I hope the engine will start," Lenny said, turning to Roger.

"Don't worry about it. I built this ship to endure the hottest summers and the coldest winters. We'll have no problems reaching Japan."

As the three boarded Bacon Jet, they turned to the Hyguas.

"Tell us what you learned in Japan," said Yuri. "And do stop back by again before Christmas."

"Will do!" said Lenny.

Johnny, Lenny, and Roger waved at each member of the Hygua family. But for Johnny, the one member of the Hygua family he hated saying goodbye to was Jeanne. He simply could not take his eyes off of her. Even as Bacon Jet left the earth, he kept trying to find Jeanne's image, while Lenny focused his attention on the village—particularly its church. The church was the final image of Domremy the three could see, before it disappeared. Taking in the moment, Lenny crossed himself.

* * *

While Bacon Jet flew over Europe, Johnny sat in the center of the aircraft. It was the point of least resistance, as he preferred not to feel the wind against the ship. As he sat, staring at the floor, his thoughts turned to Jeanne. _"I wonder what she's doing right now? Somehow I bet she doesn't have a whole lot of things to do, in such a sleepy little village like that."_

"Master?" Lenny said.

"Hm?"

"May I bring you anything? Water? Coca-Cola? Pepsi?"

"Just water will do."

"Just a moment."

A minute later, Lenny returned with two glasses of ice water. "Here you are," Lenny said, handing Johnny a glass.

"Thanks, Lenny."

Lenny took a seat next to Johnny, and had a gulp of his water.

"Lenny?" Johnny said.

"Yeah?"

"Have you ever been to Japan before?"

Lenny shook his head. "No, but I think it will be an interesting place."

"This cousin of Yuri's, have you ever met him before?"

Lenny took another gulp. "I think so, but I'm not really sure. Sometime after Yuri and his party beat me, I decided to go back to the place where I lost at. That's where I saw Yuri again—only this time he was with more people. One of the people in the group kind of looked like him, so I guess it could have been his cousin."

"Did you fight Yuri again?"

Lenny shook his head. "No, I gave him that bike jacket that you saw in the glass case inside his house. That's when I also told him that I wanted to change my life around." Taking another gulp, Lenny added, "Master, there's something that I want to ask you?"

"What's that?"

"You surprised me by the way you acted in Domremy."

"How so?"

"When Yuri asked you if Shania was your girlfriend, you said, 'No.' I don't think you would have said that back in New York."

Johnny took a gulp of his water and sighed. "I think you're right." He took another gulp. "I don't know, Lenny. There was just something about Jeanne. The moment I met her, she was all I could think about." Turning his eyes to the floor, he added, "I'm still thinking about her."

"You're quite a bit older than her, Master."

"No, I'm not. I'm only 17."

"You're 22, Master."

"Well, maybe according to my birth certificate. But not according to how I am physically."

Lenny nodded. "That's true." And pausing to take another drink, he added, "Master, there's still one more thing that I want to know."

"What's that?"

"How do you view your relationship with Shania? Please be honest."

Again, Johnny turned to the floor. "I don't know," he said, before he returned to Lenny. "I know there were times that I thought of her as my girlfriend, but I never actually kissed her. I never actually dated her. I'm sure that I 'loved her,' but maybe that love was nothing more than lust."

"Maybe you feel the same way about Jeanne?"

"…The situation's a little bit different with her."

"How so?"

"I did kiss her."

"Kissing doesn't always equal love, Master."

"I know that." Johnny took the last gulp of his water. "But there was just something about her. Between Jeanne and I, I…I just became so smitten by her."

Lenny smiled. "I could tell she was smitten by you as well, Master."

"I know! And that didn't happen with Shania."

_"Young teenage romance,"_ Lenny said, keeping his smile.

"You know, Lenny?"

"Yes, Master?"

"You've been asking me a lot of questions. How 'bout I ask you some for a change. We have a long flight ahead of us, you know?"

Lenny nodded. "True, Master, go ahead!"

"What can you tell me about that girl you were dancing with last night?"

"Cateline? She's a good dancer."

Johnny gave Lenny a look. "I was hoping for something a little more than that, Lenny. All of us could see that."

"What do you want me to say?"

"I don't know. Did you like her, or whatnot?"

"Sure, I liked her. She told me about how she grew up in Domremy, but she left the village after her boyfriend died during the war and ended up in Rouen. I told her how I hated hearing about such things, because I was living in Europe at the time of the Great War. And she told me that after ten years, she thinks she is finally over him." Lenny took the last gulp of his water. "And then she asked me some questions about what life is like in America."

Johnny nodded. "She's very pretty. I have to say."

Lenny returned the nod and smiled. "Yes. Yes, she is very pretty."

Returning the smile, Johnny asked, "You're not as smitten by her, as I am with Jeanne, are you?"

Lenny laughed. "No, I don't think so. I don't think it was love at first sight, as it looked like with you."

Johnny maintained his smile, while he looked at the floor.

"Master?"

"Yes?" Johnny replied, turning back to Lenny.

"This is, I promise, the last question I will ask you."

"What is it?"

"Although you may not be sure about how you felt about Shania, you still want to help her all the same, don't you?"

"Yes," Johnny firmly replied.

"Good," Lenny said, with a nod. "Then we're on the right trip."

* * *

About ten hours later, Bacon Jet landed in Japan. Its location was on a meadow in the forest of Katsuragi, which was also known as the 'Forest of Wind.' Like Europe, Japan was cold at this time of year. But unlike Domremy, there was no snow on the ground. However, the cold wind that blew past Johnny, Lenny, and Roger made them wish for the weather of Domremy. Yet despite the cold, Johnny and Lenny took in a moment to observe their surroundings. The Forest of Wind was not outstandingly different from the forest at Domremy—minus the wind and the cherry blossoms that were in hibernation. One feature that did stand out was the mountain. From Johnny's and Lenny's position, the mountain appeared to have the same color as the sky, with the exception of its snow covered peak.

"What an impressive looking mountain!" Lenny said. "It reminds me of the Alps I used to see growing up in Switzerland."

"That mountain," Roger said, with a gesture, "is called, Mount Katsuragi. It's regarded among the Shinto people in this region as a 'holy mountain.'"

"Shinto?" asked Johnny.

"It's the native religion of Japan. Kurando, Yuri's cousin, told me once that there's a legend that a god lives on top of that mountain."

"I take it that Yuri's cousin is a Shinto?" asked Lenny.

"I really don't know. I never really asked him about religion. I suspect, based on what I know about him, that he's probably a combination of Shintoism and Buddhism. And I think that he might have a little bit of Christian theology thrown into his personal worldview, as his wife is a practicing Christian."

Moments later, Johnny, Lenny, and Roger approached what appeared to be a village. Turning to both men, Roger said, "Well, here we are. That's Inugami Village."

Johnny and Lenny now took a moment to observe Inugami Village. The majority of homes were built in a similar style, and the bore the same color—gray. The one house that stood out from the rest, at least from what Johnny and Lenny could tell, was the large house at the top of the hill.

"I don't know much about Japanese culture," Lenny began. "But are most villages in Japan like this one?"

Roger nodded. "I would say so. The major cities in Japan have taken on a Western feel, but not the villages."

As Johnny, Lenny, and Roger entered the village, the villagers stared at them. Not so much at Roger, as they had seen him before, but at Johnny and Lenny—particularly at Lenny, who stood out as a 'giant' to them.

"Why are they looking at us like that?" Johnny asked. "I realize that we're not citizens of this village, but it's different than the looks we received at Domremy."

"It's because you're foreigners," replied Roger.

"We were foreigners in Domremy."

"Yes, but not in the same sense that you are in Japan. You're ancestry is European, so you looked like someone from France. But your ancestry is not Japanese. They know that you are not Oriental, and that is different for them. However, for Lenny, it's everything I said before, and one extra thing."

"One extra thing?" asked Lenny.

"Your size. You're like a giant to them. Most people never get to be your size. It's like the people of Lillliput encountering Gulliver for the first time in _Gulliver's Travels_."

A moment later, the voice of a young boy said, "Hey, isn't that Roger?"

Johnny, Lenny, and Roger turned. Before them were a pair of boys, who appeared to be brothers. One of the boys looked to be about eight, while the other looked to be about five. Both boys bore features of Japanese and European descent.

Roger smiled, and approached the eldest boy. "Well, hello there, Nicky!" And to the younger boy, he added, "And hello there, Yuri."

"Yuri?!" Lenny said.

The five-year-old jumped at Lenny saying his name.

Roger chuckled, and put a hand on Yuri's shoulder. "It's all right, Yuri. He's not going to hurt you. He's a friendly giant, you see."

"Friendly giant?"

Turning to Lenny, Roger smiled. "Yes, a 'friendly giant.' Remember, to a lot of these people, you are a giant. And plus, the boy is only five. The only Europeans he has probably seen are his mother and uncle."

"Oh, right," Lenny said, as he turned away.

Johnny chuckled.

"Anyway," Roger continued, "these are the children of Yuri's cousin, Kurando, and his wife, Anastasia. And this boy," Roger said, gesturing to Yuri, "is named after the Yuri that all of us know. The other boy," gesturing to Nicky, "is named after his maternal grandfather." Turning to the boys, Roger added, "Nicky, Yuri, are your parents at home?"

"Mom's at home," Nicky began, "but Daddy's at the other village with Uncle Alexei."

Roger nodded. "I see. Well then, let's go and visit your mother."


	9. Face in the Mirror

**Author's Note**: Hey, everyone! We're moving along nicely. A few more Shadow Hearts: Covenant characters will make their return in this chapter, along with a familiar area. As always, I ask you to continue to give me critical reviews.

_Face in the mirror,  
we meet eye to eye,  
passions of eternal fire.  
Desperately wanting and out of control,  
dancing on winds of desire.  
Oh, even the deadly shades of night,  
won't let me hide,  
from her eyes of fire_—

"Eyes of Fire"—Rainbow

**Darkness and Light**

**Chapter IX**

Nicky and Yuri led Johnny, Lenny, and Roger to one of the larger houses in the village—although not quite as large as the house on the hill. Besides this house being larger then some of the other houses in the village, it was also painted a different color. It was white.

"Mom!" Nicky said, as he opened the door. "Roger's here with some people to see you and Dad."

"Thank you, Nicky," a woman's voice said from another room. "Roger, please wait. I'll be there in a minute."

"All right."

Due to its predominately Shinto and Buddhist population, Inugami Village was not exactly prepared for Christmas. But that was not the case in the home that Roger took Johnny and Lenny to. In the corner of the master room was a Christmas tree. And on the fireplace mantel was a nativity scene. Also, in one corner of the master room were numerous icons of Jesus and the saints.

Finally, a young woman entered the room—responding to her firstborn's call. This woman looked to be in her late 20s, and she was very European with her strawberry-blonde hair and blue eyes. Around her neck was a Byzantine crucifix, and in her arms was a baby girl, who looked to be about one, but possibly two years of age. If this child was her daughter, as Johnny and Lenny assumed it to be, she—like her older brothers—had Oriental and European features.

"Roger!" the young woman said, while she placed the baby on the floor. "It's good to see you again! Merry Christmas!"

"Merry Christmas to you as well, Anastasia—I have some people that I'd like for you to meet." Gesturing to Johnny, Roger said, "This is Johnny Garland. He's come all the way from America."

"Hi, there," Johnny said, with a smile.

And turning to Lenny, Roger added, "And this is his servant, Lenny. I don't know, if you remember him or not."

Anastasia studied Lenny's features. "Didn't we meet in that prison off the coast of France?"

Lenny nodded. "That we did. However, I knew who you were long before that meeting."

Johnny watched Anastasia bite her lower lip. Something about the way Lenny responded to her question made her nervous.

"How's that?" she asked.

"I was a member of the society that was led by Rasputin." Lenny bowed his head. "I am sorry for the things my former organization did, Your Highness."

"Your Highness?" Johnny said.

"I accept your apology," Anastasia said. "Besides, my father had plenty of time to fix the problems that ultimately caused the revolution. I've done my best to simply forget about it and move on."

"Um?" Johnny began. "Forgive me, but I don't understand a word of what you're saying."

"Master, this is Grand Duchess Anastasia Romanov," Lenny said, gesturing to Anastasia.

"Grand Duchess Anastasia Romanov?"

"She's the youngest daughter of Tsar Nicholas II of Russia."

"Huh? I thought everyone from the tsar's family was killed."

"That's what the Bolshevik Government would want, if they ever got the chance," Anastasia said. "I have just met you, and I have opened up a great secret to you, but you must tell no one that you have seen me. My brother and I can't risk being found by the communists."

Johnny nodded. "Don't worry. I won't tell anyone."

"Your Highness," Lenny began, "how were you able to survive? The last word that I heard on the tsar and his family was that they were murdered in Siberia."

"I think there will be a time to talk about that later," interjected Roger.

And Roger truly had the final word on the subject, because a moment later, a man wearing a traditional Japanese kimono—with a katana to his side—entered the home. The man's eyes and hair were similar to Yuri's, but Yuri was significantly taller.

"Daddy!" the little girl said, as she toddled to her father.

"Well, there's my little girl, Akiko!" the man said, as he scooped up his daughter, and kissed her cheek. Patting the girl on her bottom, he returned her to the floor, and turned to the guests. "It looks like we have some guests." And looking directly at Roger, he added, "And Roger, how have you been?"

"Never better, Kurando. I have some people here that I'd like to introduce you to." Gesturing to Johnny, Roger said, "This is Johnny Garland. He's come all the way from New York."

"Nice to meet you," Johnny said, bowing his head.

Kurando returned the gesture.

"And this is his servant, Lenny," Roger added, gesturing to Lenny. "I don't know if you remember him or not, but he used to do battle with Yuri."

Kurando studied Lenny's face. "I think we met once. I think it was in that hellish prison off the coast of France."

"Yeah, that's right," Lenny said. "Your cousin wasn't so sure if you'd remember me or not, so he wrote you a letter."

"A letter?"

"Yeah," Lenny said, as he removed the letter from his coat pocket, and handed it to Kurando.

"Thank you. Please give me a moment to read it."

* * *

_Hey, Kurando!_

_ How are you? It sure has been a while. Well, I am writing you this letter for a specific reason. I assume that when you get it, you will have already met Johnny and Lenny, but you may not know why they are in Japan._

_ Johnny, a few months ago, did battle with creatures of malice. Similar to what we did 15 years ago. A member of Johnny's party, a girl called, Shania, was affected with malice. Johnny wants to help her, and his butler, Lenny—who you might have remembered seeing 15 years go—wants to help him. They need to find two things. First, they want to know where on Earth they can release the blue light of Earth. Second, they want to know where Shania is. I told them that Aunt Saki could probably use the Fountain of Sukune to help them._

_ Other than that, I would like to wish you, the children, Anastasia, Alexei and Yoshiko—and their little daughter, Alix—a Merry Christmas!_

_ Take care of yourselves!_

_ Yuri_

* * *

"So I see," Kurando said, as he folded up the letter. "You need to use the Fountain of Sukune to find the blue light of Earth and this Shania girl?"

"That's correct," Roger said.

"Um, what's the Fountain of Sukune?" asked Johnny.

"It's a fountain inside the cavern of this village," replied Kurando. "Many things can be seen within its waters."

"Huh?"

"I think it will be easier for you to see it for yourself, then for me to explain it to you. You'll understand better that way."

* * *

Half an hour later, Johnny, Lenny, and Roger stood inside the cavern of Inugami Village. Besides the stalactites and stalagmites, the cavern housed a tiny waterfall. Kurando stood next to the three men. And before them was a petite older woman wearing a red kimono with dark eyes and hair, which showed a few specks of gray. Kurando identified the woman as his mother, Saki.

"Give me a moment, everyone," Saki said. "I will see if I can provide for you the answers that you seek."

Saki began to dance. Her dancing appeared to be nothing out of the ordinary that Johnny and Lenny had seen before on news reels about Japan. But as Saki danced, something changed in the water. It no longer reflected the cavern's ceiling. Instead, it began to reflect a foreign location.

"Lenny," Johnny said, turning to his butler and pointing at the scene, "doesn't that place look familiar?"

"Yeah, it does." Lenny paused to place his chin between his thumb and first finger. "But I can't quite place my finger on it."

"I can," interjected Roger.

"You can?!" Johnny said.

Roger nodded. "That's Wales and Cardiff. In fact, it's just above my house."

"Your house?"

Again, Roger nodded. "Where the ruins of Nemeton Monastery are."

The image in the water began to change. The scene went from the air to the earth. Down, down into the earth, through the ruins of what was once Nemeton Monastery. Johnny, Lenny, and Roger watched as the waters crossed from room to room of the desecrated monastery. Finally, the crossing stopped. The waters revealed what appeared to have once been a chapel, due to its broken mosaics of Christ and the saints. And in that ruined chapel, Johnny, Lenny, and Roger saw it—the blue light of Earth!

"I'll be damned!" Roger said. "The blue light is in the Nemeton Monastery."

"Well, we know where that's at," Johnny said. "But what about Shania?"

Within seconds after Johnny asked his question, the scene in the water began to change. This time it revealed a city with numerous skyscrapers.

"That place looks familiar," Johnny said.

"It should, Master. It's New York City."

"W-what?!"

Lenny nodded. "More specifically, it's Queens."

Johnny studied the scene a little closer. "Yeah, you're right! It is Queens, because I can see King Manor," Johnny said, pointing.

Soon the scene changed from the air to the street level—or more specifically, an alley. And in that alley, Johnny saw the person he had been searching for—Shania. On the surface, she appeared to be the same Shania that Johnny had known and loved. Her skin had color, and so did her hair. However, one feature of Shania was distinctly different—her eyes. No longer were they the blue eyes of a person with Native American and Indian descent. Instead, they were the eyes of fire—the eyes of malice! As the scene closed on Shania's eyes, the image faded, and in its place was the reflection of the cavern that housed the Fountain of Sukune.


	10. Anastasia Reminiscence

_Mother Russia,  
how are you sleeping?  
Middle winter cold winds blow.  
From the trees the snowflakes drifting,  
twirling 'round like ghosts in the snow.  
Mother Russia,  
poetry majestic,  
tells the time of a great empire.  
Turning 'round the old man ponders,  
reminiscing an age gone by_—

"Mother Russia"—Iron Maiden

_Sweet child in time,  
you'll see the line.  
The line that's drawn between,  
the good and the bad.  
See the blind man,  
he's shooting at the world.  
Bullets flying,  
taking toll.  
If you've been bad,  
lord I bet you have.  
And you've not been hit,  
by flying led.  
You'd better close your eyes,  
and bow your head.  
Wait for the ricochet_—

"Child in Time"—Deep Purple

**Darkness and Light**

**Chapter X**

After Anastasia put her daughter to bed, and watched her two boys play in Nicky's room, she joined Johnny, Lenny, Roger, and Kurando in the master room—who sat in a circle around the fireplace, having a glass of wine. Pouring herself a glass, Anastasia took a seat next to her husband.

"Your Highness?" Lenny began, as Anastasia sat down.

"Yes?"

"When the three of us arrived earlier in the day, I asked you how you were able to survive that night in Siberia."

"Yes." Anastasia paused to look at the icon of St. Seraphim; her mother's favorite saint. "It's been over ten years."

"How were you able to survive, Your Highness?"

"I'd like to know that myself," interjected Johnny. "I mean, the last I heard, the entire family of the tsar was killed."

"Gentlemen," Kurando began, with a gesture, "this is a sensitive subject for my wife…"

But Anastasia raised a hand. "It's all right, Kurando. I think it's an obvious question anyone would ask, since most people think that my brother and I are dead." Anastasia took a sip of wine. "Where should I begin? When my father abdicated, or the night in question?"

"I was kind of young when all of this happened," replied Johnny. "So a little history lesson wouldn't hurt me any."

Anastasia nodded. "Very well then." Taking another sip of wine, Anastasia said, "In March of 1917, my father abdicated the throne of Russia, and the duma—or parliament—took over the country. The new leader of Russia, Alexander Kerensky, tried to work with King George's government in Britain to move our family there." Anastasia paused to sip her wine. "But the British wouldn't have us. So for our own safety, Kerensky sent us to Tobolsk in Siberia. For the first couple of months, nothing drastic happened. It wasn't until Kerensky's government fell, and Lenin took over that we noticed changes in Russia. Through Lenin, we were moved to Ekaterinburg in the Ural Mountains. Most of the people there hated my father."

Taking another sip, Anastasia said, "Now, let's move to that night in July. What happened to us? Around midnight, that night, our guards woke us up. We were told not to take anything with us, because it was just a precautionary move, due to some disturbances in town." Taking another sip, Anastasia added, "But that doesn't mean we were necessarily going to follow orders. My sister, Olga, had a dagger that she had snuck in all the way from Petrograd to Ekaterinburg. She gave the dagger to me, and told me to slip it underneath my dress. I had my mystic egg that our royal watchmaker, Edgar, made me back in 1915. The guards, however, were too stupid to realize that it was a weapon."

"Um, what exactly is a 'mystic egg'?" asked Johnny.

"It's a Faberge style egg that acts as a weapon. What it does is that it will ricochet off someone. For example, I could throw it at the wall, and it will bounce off the wall."

"Kind of like a ball?"

Anastasia nodded. "Yeah, that's one way to look at it." And taking another sip of wine, she continued. "Anyway, we were taken to the cellar of this house—the Ipatiev House, for the record, is what it was called. All of us were there—including our servants, who followed us all the way from Petrograd to Ekaterinburg. Our guards told us that we were to pose for a family photograph. But instead, our chief guard, a man named Yakov Yurovsky, read us a death sentence." Anastasia looked at the floor, before she turned back to the men. "I really don't want to go into the very graphic details, but I will say that once the shooting began, the bullets ricocheted off my corset."

"How?" asked Lenny.

"My mother told all of us girls to sew our jewels into our corsets. We were told this, because if we ever escaped, we would have something to live on. But despite the shooting, I did fall down. I fell down next to Alexei. I could tell that he was still alive, and I whispered to him to play dead."

Finishing her wine, Anastasia said, "We were placed on this truck, and that's when I noticed that only Alexei and I were still alive. Eventually this truck, driven by our executioners, got stuck in the mud. I realized that this might be our best chance to escape. I handed Alexei the dagger. Alexei had never used a weapon before. I knew he was scared, but I told him to have courage. He did. When some of those guards came to push the truck, Alexei and I struck—me with the mystic egg and Alexei with the dagger. I don't think that we killed anyone, but I think we caught the guards off guard enough that we managed to escape."

Finishing his wine, Johnny said, "I understand how you survived that night in Siberia, but how did you make it all the way to Japan? It is a long way from Russia to Japan."

"Let me answer that," interjected Kurando. "The Fountain of Sukune, which you saw today, sometime before everything Anastasia told you took place, my mother had a premonition in the water. It was a bad omen that warned of the execution of the tsar and his family. I kept in contact with Anastasia after our journey ended together, but we had not seen each other, since about the end of 1916. Still, I knew where she was, and I left immediately for Ekaterinburg."

Finishing his wine, Kurando continued, "Of course, time was always against me. It was dark, when I arrived on the night that all of this took place. Here I was in Russia, but I had no horse, no carriage, and no car. Fortunately, I did find a man, who had a car. I asked him for a ride, but when I told where I wanted to go he was reluctant to help me, so I had to use the one thing that can loosen the hearts of any man."

"What is that?" asked Johnny.

"Money," Kurando replied, short and to the point. "He drove me near the Ipatiev house, and I charged into the home. I was more than willing to slice up a few Bolsheviks in half, but the house was empty. That's when I went down into the basement, and I saw the bullet holes." Kurando paused to turn to Anastasia. Although Anastasia had been able to put a lot of her past behind her, sometimes she still suffered bad memories from what happened that night. Kurando did not want to remind Anastasia of too many of her bad memories. Turning back to the men, Kurando continued. "I won't go into the details about what I thought, but it wasn't good. I remember going back to the car, and telling the driver that no one was home. The driver seemed to sense what had happened. He didn't like the Romanovs, but somehow he felt sympathy for me. He told me that if he were the Bolsheviks, he'd take the Romanovs to this mine shaft. I asked him to take me there. He didn't want to, but he did so anyway."

Kurando left his seat, and journeyed to the bottle of wine on the counter. Turning to his guests he asked, "Would anyone else like another glass of wine?"

Roger accepted. So did Lenny. Johnny and Anastasia refused.

As Kurando began to pour three glasses of wine, he continued his story. "The driver, of course, would not get too close to where the mine was located—probably for his own safety, and I can't blame him—so I had to walk. Thankfully, I did not have to walk too far. This mine was located in a forest. I called for Anastasia in the forest. I was just hoping that maybe she would respond. I won't go into about how scared I was." Looking briefly at Anastasia, Kurando added, "Thankfully, she heard me. She came with her brother." Handing Roger and Lenny their glasses, Kurando retook his seat, and grabbed Anastasia's hand. "To quote something, Anastasia often tells me, when good things happen, 'God was on our side.'" Kurando took a sip from his new glass. "To make a long story short, that driver, I guess feeling sympathy for Anastasia and Alexei, took us to Omsk. He also told us that he had some coats we could use, mostly to disguise Anastasia and Alexei. From there, we took a train to China, and finally, a boat to Japan." Taking another sip of wine, Kurando added, "That, in short, is the story of how Grand Duchess Anastasia and Grand Duke Alexei escaped Russia."

"Your Highness?" began Johnny.

"It's not necessary to call me that, Johnny, but yes?"

"Did you hear about a woman living in New York about a year ago, who claimed to be the Grand Duchess Anastasia?"

Anastasia laughed. "Oh, yes! I heard about that."

"What do you think about it?"

"I think she's a terrific actress, because she's fooled a lot of prominent people."

"She slightly fooled me," interjected Lenny. "I remember looking at a photograph of her from a distance, and I thought that maybe should be the Grand Duchess Anastasia. But I just couldn't tell for certain."

"Well, obviously you know now that she is an imposter." Anastasia turned to look at an icon of the Virgin Mary, before she turned back to Lenny. "Quite frankly, I don't know how she has been able to fool the people that she has."

"Who in the royal family knows about the status of you and the tsarevich?"

"Only a few people know. My aunts know. And my grandma knew, but she passed away last year." Anastasia turned to the clock on the wall. "Well, it's getting late. I probably should go to bed."

"Before you do, Your Highness," began Lenny, "may I ask you just one more thing?"

"Sure, go ahead."

"My former boss, Nicholai, he told me that he was the illegitimate son of Tsar Nicholas II. He told me that before your father was tsar, he had a mistress named Mathilde Kschessinska, who was his mother. Is all of this true, or did he just make all of it up to fool me?"

"No, he didn't make it up. Before my father met my mother he had a relationship with a Polish ballerina named Mathilde Kschessinska. It was a relationship that was never going to go anywhere, because she could never be the empress. But a child was born from that union—Nicholas. He was named after his father, my father. But he apparently liked to use the Russian form of saying his name, hence Nicholai. After Nicholai was born my grandfather, who I never met, told my father that he should distance himself from the child and his mother. Daddy didn't want to do it—he told me later, when I asked him about all this—but it was for the good of the dynasty." Anastasia looked at the floor, before she turned back to Lenny. "I would never tell Yuri this, but I have often felt sorry for Nicholai. He simply was born under a bad sign." Anastasia sighed. "But that's enough of me talking for the night. I'm off to bed."

* * *

As he did in the Hygua home, Johnny spent the evening on the Inugami couch. The fire from the fireplace cast a glow on the Christmas tree—particularly its ornaments. Two of the ornaments that stood out to Johnny were a gold icon of Madonna and Child and the image of Father Christmas worshipping the Christ child. The glowing ornaments helped create a peaceful feeling that eased Johnny to sleep.

* * *

The almost nude French model was a familiar sight. _"Now where have I seen this before?"_ Johnny said. _"Oh, yes! St. Jehanne's in Domremy."_ Examining his surroundings, Johnny could tell that he was indeed in St. Jehanne's tavern in Domremy, France. All the lights were on. However, very few people were in the bar.

"Well, hello, Johnny!" a familiar voice said.

Johnny turned. The voice came from the bar, and its owner was Jacques with a big smile.

"What can I get you?" Jacques asked. "Another lager?"

"Uh, sure, Jacques."

Instead of sitting at the bar, Johnny chose to stand—waiting for Jacques to return with his beer.

"Johnny, you're back!" came another familiar voice.

Johnny turned, although he knew exactly who this voice belonged to. There stood Jeanne, wearing a purple dress. The dress was short, and thus revealed her legs. But it also revealed Jeanne's curvy body. In short, Jeanne was gorgeous, and her smile only added to her beauty.

"Here you are, sir," Jacques said, as he placed Johnny's beer before him.

"Thank you," Johnny said, as he reached for his wallet.

But Jacques stopped him. "Don't worry. It's all taken care of."

"By whom?"

Jacques chuckled. "You ask too many questions." And Jacques left Johnny to tend to the other side of the bar.

"When did you get back?" asked Jeanne, standing next to Johnny.

"I…I honestly don't know."

Jeanne giggled.

"Jeanne, this is weird."

"What is?"

"We're in St. Jehanne's with all the lights on. But why is there nobody else here?"

Again, Jeanne giggled. "Oh, Johnny, you do ask too many questions. Why does it matter? As long as we're here, right?" she asked, with a smile.

Jeanne's smile pierced Johnny's soul. Wrapping an arm around her waist, he pulled her close. "Right!"

Jeanne patted his rear, before she said, "Guess what, Johnny?"

"What?"

"I got a job."

Johnny was not expecting that one. "A job?"

She nodded. "A few days ago, a man from Paris visited the village. This man specializes in finding girls for modeling jobs, and he said that I'd be perfect."

"Well, yeah, Jeanne, you're gorgeous…"

"Guess how I'm supposed to pose?"

Looking around the bar to think, Johnny turned to the partially nude model. "I don't know." And pointing to the model, he joked, "Like that?"

Jeanne giggled. "You're a good guesser."

Johnny's eyes grew wide. "Huh?"

"What's with that look?" she asked, smiling.

"Oh! It's nothing. I'm just surprised you'd get to pose like that."

"Why? Am I not 'cute' enough?"

"Oh, no! You're gorgeous! I just thought that maybe…" Johnny turned away.

"What is it, Johnny?"

Johnny's face was red, when he turned back. "I think that I spoke without actually thinking. It's a bad habit of mine."

Jeanne laughed. And taking Johnny's hands, she asked, "Shall I pose for you?"

Again, Johnny was stunned. "Huh?"

Jeanne giggled. "I love that look."

"What do you mean by 'pose for you'?"

"I mean would you like me to pose for you, like the girl in the painting?"

"Right now?"

Jeanne nodded.

"I-I don't think we can do that right now, Jeanne."

"And why not?"

"Well, there are all these people in the bar, and there's no place where we can be alone, and…"

Once again, Jeanne giggled. "Silly boy, there are plenty of back rooms in this bar." Taking Johnny by the hand, she added, "Come on, I'll show you."

"Just what the hell do you think you're doing?!" came another familiar voice.

This voice was one Johnny had forgotten, and it froze him. He slowly turned his head to see Shania. Shania stood with her hands on her hips, and two Native American tomahawks at her side. "What the hell is this, Johnny?! I get infected with malice, and you quickly abandon me? You didn't even bother to look for me. Instead, you run off with the first blonde you found with cute legs and an ass!"

"Johnny, who is this?" asked Jeanne.

Johnny swallowed a lump. "Um, this is Shania, Jeanne. She, um…"

"What the hell are you doing with your arms around him?!" Shania shouted, staring coldly at Jeanne. "I watched you smack him on the ass. Just what the hell do you think you're doing?!"

"Johnny didn't tell me anything about having a girlfriend."

"Oh, he didn't?!"

"That's because she wasn't," Johnny said to Jeanne. And turning to Shania, he added, "We never actually dated, but I have been…"

"Oh, but you loved me, Johnny. I can read your heart. You loved me, but you quickly threw it all away once you laid eyes on this little French whore right here!" Shania said, pointing to Jeanne.

"Excuse me?!" Jeanne said. "Just what the hell did you just say?!"

"Now, just wait a minute," Johnny said, as he approached Shania.

But Shania would not allow Johnny to talk anymore. She removed one of her tomahawks, and struck him with the hardest part of the blade.

What Johnny saw next was not stars, but the master room of the Inugami home. Still he checked his face. All his bones and all his teeth seemed to be intact. It was only a nightmare. But it left him wondering, _"Have I been doing the right thing?"_


	11. Contemplating the Dream

**Author's Note:** Hey, everyone! Sorry that it's taken me a while to update. My work schedule really got in the way of when I could and could not write. It's going to be the same for a while now too, but at least I was able to get this chapter written. As always, I ask you to read and give me critical reviews.

_Think I've heard your voice before.  
Think I've said these words before.  
Something makes me feel,  
I just might lose my mind.  
Am I still inside my dream?  
Is this a new reality?  
Something makes me feel that I have lost my mind.  
All my hopes and expectation,  
looking for an explanation,  
Coming to the realization,  
that I can't see for sure_—

"Dream of Mirrors"—Iron Maiden

**Darkness and Light**

**Chapter XI**

For the rest of the evening, Johnny struggled to go back to sleep. He tossed and turned, but nothing would work. Ultimately, when Johnny thought he was tired enough for sleep, Anastasia entered the room, and added a stick of wood for the fire.

Turning to Johnny, she noticed that his eyes were open. "So, you're awake?"

Johnny raised his hand flat, and waved it back and forth. "More or less."

Anastasia chuckled. "Is there anything in particular that you'd like for breakfast?"

"…No, not really."

"That's good, because I'm not much of a cook."

Johnny chuckled.

"I wouldn't take that as a joke, Johnny," Kurando said, entering the master room.

"Kurando?!" Anastasia said.

Kurando laughed. "Oh, come now, Anastasia. You know how much I love you, but cooking just isn't one of your strengths."

"Hmph!" Anastasia said, while she turned away and crossed her arms. "I'll have you know that when Nicky was a baby, he always asked me to cook him grilled cheese."

Kurando laughed. "Yes, yes, I know. And come now, with that face!" Kurando placed his arms around Anastasia's waist, and began to dance with her.

At first, Anastasia's expression was changeless, but then she started to laugh. She kissed Kurando and said, "It's all because of all those years I spent as a grand duchess."

"Of course," Kurando said with a smile. "But you know, Alexei spent all those years as a grand duke, and he's actually quite a good cook…"

"Damn it, Kurando!"

Kurando laughed, and placed his hands on Anastasia's arms. "But you do cook some very good bread."

Anastasia smiled. "Yes, but it takes me a while."

"I'll tell you what. We do have some fresh eggs. Let me cook them."

* * *

While Kurando was certainly no gourmet, he had learned through his mother how to cook for himself.

"I'm just curious," Johnny began, as he stood next to Kurando—watching him cook. "Is Anastasia really all that bad of a cook?"

Kurando chuckled. "That she is. She's a great wife and mother, but cooking has never been one of her strengths." Kurando smiled, and looked at the ceiling. "But, I must confess, she was right about Nicky enjoying her grilled cheese, when he was a baby. I can still remember him pulling on her clothes and asking for grilled cheese. And Anastasia does make some good bread, like I said earlier."

"So do you usually do most of the cooking then?"

"Not really. Usually my mother does, and occasionally we visit the local tavern. By the way, Johnny, how do you like your eggs?"

"Scrambled."

Kurando nodded. "All right. No problem. I'll have them fixed in a little while. Why don't you walk around the house some? It'll be a good way to kill time."

* * *

Following Kurando's advice, Johnny made his way around the Inugami home. Most of the house he had seen already, except for the upstairs. The upstairs contained mostly the family bedrooms. Johnny could tell which rooms belonged to the children, due to the size of their beds. Akiko's was obvious. It was the nursery. However, he was unable to tell which room was Nicky's and which room was Yuri's. But regardless of which room was which, Johnny did notice similar features in all the rooms. Above each bed was a Byzantium crucifix, and to the left and right of the crucifix were icons—one of Christ and one of Mary.

Further down the hallway, Johnny came across the room that he could tell was the master bedroom—due to the larger bed. One of the first features Johnny noticed in the master bedroom was a night stand on one side of the bed that held a statue of the Buddha. Johnny assumed that this was Kurando's side of the bed. The other side of the bed, along the wall, was adorned with icons. Obviously this was Anastasia's side. Johnny could tell the icons of Christ, the Virgin, St. Peter, and St. Paul, but the other saints, he could not identify. Also on the wall were a large portrait of Tsar Nicholas II, and a smaller portrait of Empress Alexandra. Near the portraits of the tsar and tsarina were photographs of three small children. The children were, of course, Nicky, Yuri, and Akiko. Akiko's photograph was recent, but the pictures of Nicky and Yuri were taken quite a few years ago—when they were toddlers. For Johnny, the photograph that stood out the most for him was of Nicky pictured with a white wolf. At the base of the photograph was written, probably in Anastasia's handwriting: _Nicky, age 2, with Blanca_. In the photograph, the two-year-old Nicky, dressed in a sailor suit, rode Blanca just as though he was riding a horse.

"_This must have been the white wolf that Jeanne told me about earlier. Considering that he looks pretty old in that photograph, I doubt that he's still alive."_

"Master," Lenny called from the stairs, "the food's ready. Come and get some!"

"All right, I'm coming!" But as Johnny left the master bedroom and returned the hallway, he stopped at the top of the stairs. "Lenny?"

Returning to the base of the stairs, Lenny replied, "Yes, sir?"

"Could you come here a sec? I want to ask you something."

"All right," Lenny said, before he ascended the stairs. Meeting Johnny at the top of the stairs, he said, "Yes, sir?"

"There's something I want to show you. Please follow me."

Johnny directed Lenny to the master bedroom and to the photograph of Nicky and Blanca. Gesturing to the photograph, Johnny asked, "Is this that same white wolf that you told me about in Domremy?"

Looking closely at the photograph, Lenny concluded, "Yes, it is."

Johnny nodded. "I just wondered. Jeanne told me about seeing the white wolf in Japan, but I wondered if it was the same wolf."

"I seriously doubt that wolf's alive anymore. All of this took place almost fifteen years ago, and I doubt wolves live that long."

"Probably not." And turning to the hallway, Johnny added, "Well, I suppose that we should have some breakfast, before it gets too cold."

* * *

Anastasia and Kurando created some extra space at the dinner table for their guests. But it was not necessary. Nicky and Yuri Inugami inhaled their breakfast, left the dinner table, and began to put on their coats.

"I want you boys back inside in a few minutes," Anastasia said. "We're going to have Orthros soon."

"Orthros?" said Johnny.

"It's morning prayers."

"Ah, you mean Matins."

Anastasia chuckled. "Yes, that's how some people in the West call them. I can certainly tell that you're not Orthodox."

"No, I'm Episcopalian."

"What?"

"Anglican."

"Ah! The Church of England."

Johnny nodded. "Yes."

"That's the faith of my English relatives."

"Oh, you have many relatives in England?"

"Certainly, my great-grandmother was Queen Victoria."

"Oh," Johnny said, coming across as a person who was not very scholarly. "Well, that makes perfect sense."

"Kurando, Grand Duchess Anastasia," Lenny began—trying to turn the attention away from his not so scholarly master, "I want to thank you for your hospitality. And I especially want to extend my thanks to the grand duchess, because we were enemies the last time we met."

"That's all in the past, Lenny," Anastasia said.

"Lenny," Kurando began, "are you going to see Yuri soon?"

"Yes. We're going to stop in Domremy, before we go on to Wales."

"_Yuri. Jeanne,"_ Johnny said.

"Good," Kurando said. "Can you do me a favor?"

"A favor?"

Kurando nodded. "I have something to give him." Removing a letter from inside his kimono, Kurando said, "Will you please give him this?"

Taking the letter, Lenny replied, "Certainly."

"Thank you."

* * *

The journey from Japan to Domremy would be at least fifteen hours, and by the time the party touched French soil it would be nightfall. To kill time, Lenny tried to start up a conversation with Johnny and Roger about any particular subject. But for Johnny, all he wanted to do was sleep. Yet he could not sleep. His dream, or nightmare, from last night remained on his mind. So Johnny just sat in his seat, occasionally looking at a window to stare at the sky.

"You sure are quiet, Master," Lenny said, as he took a seat next to him. "Are you thinking about where we have to go?"

Johnny shook his head. "I'm thinking about how I'd like to sleep, yet I can't."

"Why? Didn't you get enough sleep last night?"

Again, Johnny shook his head. "No, I didn't."

"How come?"

"Well…as silly as this sounds, I had a dream last night that I simply couldn't get out of my mind."

"Dream?"

"Actually it was more like a nightmare."

"What was in this nightmare?"

"I was in St. Jehanne's in Domremy, and I was with Jeanne. And then Shania appeared. She snapped at me for abandoning her, and running off with Jeanne."

"And did something bring this dream, or rather, this nightmare on?"

"Huh?"

"You ever heard of Dr. Freud's theory on dreams?"

Looking at the floor, Johnny said, "Dr. Freud?" And returning to Lenny, he added, "No, I guess not."

"Freud said that dreams are caused either by what we're guilty of or what we want." Lenny briefly looked at the ceiling before he continued. "I don't know if it's true or not, but it is something to think about." Returning his focus to Johnny, he added, "Did anything happen to bring this dream on?"

Folding his arms over his knees, Johnny replied, "Well, there are times that I have felt that I'm betraying Shania."

"How so?"

"Well, you know that a month ago I would have called Shania my girlfriend…"

"Even though she never technically was, right?"

"Right. I guess…I guess I've just felt that I haven't been honest with the whole situation."

"You've been honest with me."

Johnny nodded. "Yeah."

"Have you been honest with Jeanne?"

Johnny looked at the floor, before he returned to Lenny. "Maybe not as honest as I could be."

"And do you think that's your problem?"

Returning his gaze to the floor, Johnny said, "I don't know."

"You like Jeanne a lot, don't you?"

Turning back to Lenny, Johnny replied—short and to the point—"Yes."

"Then tell her how you feel, and tell her why. You need to do this, Master."

"Why?"

"Because where we're going in Wales, you can't have anything distract you. We're practically going to enter Hell itself, and you don't need any regrets on your mind to distract you."


	12. Return to Domremy

_I hear your footsteps on the ground.  
Tempting me to turn around.  
It's just the echo,  
of a disenchanted lover,  
shuffling aimlessly,  
homeward bound.  
To empty rooms,  
and picture frames,  
and friends who can't recall our names.  
I'm haunted,  
haunted,  
is that what you wanted?  
All that's left is the ghost of your smile.  
It stays awhile,  
then fades away_—

"Haunted"—Deep Purple

**Darkness and Light**

**Chapter XII**

The French sky was a cold dark gray that was getting even darker, as Bacon Jet landed in the forest outside of Domremy. Roger was the first to step off the ship. And as he did, he nearly fell. "Holy shit!" Roger said, as Johnny quickly grabbed him.

"You all right, Roger?" asked Lenny.

"Yes," Roger replied, with a nod. "Thanks to Johnny anyway. If I would have fallen, I'm sure that I would be singing with the angels right about now."

"Hmm," Lenny said, as he looked at the sky, "I can hardly see the moon. That means it's going to be dangerous."

"Dangerous?" asked Johnny.

Lenny nodded. "It would be dangerous anyway. But it's even worse without the moon."

"What is?"

"Black ice."

"Black ice?"

Lenny nodded. "It's regular ice, of course, but it looks black at night, and, therefore, it's difficult to see—we could easily fall, and bust our asses on it."

"So then we just need to walk carefully?"

Again, Lenny nodded. "Correct. Make sure to keep one hand on Roger, and I'll keep another," Lenny added, as he grabbed Roger's arm.

As the three walked cautiously to the village, they could see—through the faint glow of the moon—the ice on the trees.

"It must be beautiful to look at during the daytime," Johnny said.

Lenny nodded. "Like the perfect Christmas card. Not a bad thing, since it's nearly Christmas."

"By the way, Lenny?" asked Johnny.

"Yes?"

"Where are we staying tonight? I doubt that we would ask Yuri, if we could stay with him at this hour."

"It's not that late where we can't visit him, but he's probably having dinner right now, so that wouldn't be a good idea. Still, I think it's too late to ask him to stay as well. With that being said, I think I'll secure some rooms for us at St. Jehanne's."

"St. Jehanne's?"

Lenny nodded.

"I see."

"However, Master?"

"I think you should go over and visit them."

"Huh? Why?"

"Jeanne will enjoy seeing you."

"Jeanne?"

"Umhmm," Lenny said with a nod.

"Ah, yes!" interjected Roger. "I did seem to notice that Jeanne was a bit smitten by Johnny."

"Maybe Jeanne will like to see me," Johnny said, "but I don't know about everyone else. They're eating dinner, like you said."

"Don't you have a lot of thoughts on your mind?" Lenny said.

"Thoughts on your mind?" interjected Roger.

"It's a personal issue, Roger," responded Lenny. "But it's true that the young master does. And he needs to take care of them, correct?"

"…Yes."

Lenny nodded. "Good man! After you help me get Roger to the inn, go and visit the Hygua residence."

"Yes, sir."

* * *

The Hygua family had just sat at the dinner table at a quarter till six, when Johnny knocked at the door. Alice answered: "Well, hello, Johnny! You're back?"

Johnny nodded. "Yes, I'm back."

"Do come in. It's quite cold out there tonight."

"Johnny!" Jeanne said. Hearing her mother say his name caused her to leave the dinner table and investigate. "Welcome back!"

Jeanne's appearance caused Johnny to forget everything around him except her. Jeanne wore a pink dress that was relatively short, and, therefore, revealed her legs. The top of her breasts were also displayed, as her golden hair dangled around them. "Thanks, Jeanne," he said, trying not to blush. "It's good to see you again as well."

Jeanne smiled.

And he returned it.

"Hi, Johnny," a beaming Zachary Hygua said, while he entered the master room.

"Hi, Zack," Johnny said with a smile. "Are you ready for Christmas?"

"Of course! Aren't you?"

Johnny placed his chin between his thumb and first finger and looked at the floor. "I don't know," he replied, before returning his eyes to Zachary. "I haven't really thought that much about Christmas this year."

"Hey, Johnny," Yuri said, entering the room. "Are you hungry?"

"Um, well…?"

"Alice made some vegetable soup tonight, and she made more than we'll be able to eat tonight. So you're welcome to have some, if you'd like."

"Um, sure."

* * *

Johnny took a seat next to Jeanne—much to her delight and to his. Yet in the back of his mind, Johnny knew what he had to tell her. _"How will she react? Will she be angry with me? Or will she simply not care? Maybe I shouldn't tell her at all? No! I have to tell her. It's like Lenny said, I have to get this off my chest."_

"Johnny," Yuri began with a smile, "you sure are quiet tonight."

"Oh, sorry. I guess I just have some things on my mind."

"Like what?" asked Jeanne.

"Well…"

Noticing Johnny's pause, Yuri decided to intervene. "It's all right, Johnny. You don't have to tell us, if you don't want to."

"Well…" Knowing that Jeanne would certainly ask him later, he decided to change the 'subject' a little, because what Johnny was about to mention was something that was truly on his mind. "Well, I was just thinking about what I saw in Japan."

"You mean from Aunt Saki and the Fountain of Sukune?"

Johnny nodded. "Yes."

"Forgive me for asking, but I am curious to know, what did you see?"

"I saw an image of Shania, the girl that was part of my team. She was in Queens, New York."

"Wait! Where's Queens?" interjected Jeanne.

"It's a suburb of New York—the city, I mean."

"A suburb?" asked Zachary.

"It's a community that exists outside a major city. I'm sure that Paris has hundreds of them."

"What about the Blue Light of Earth?" asked Yuri. "Where you able to find that?"

Johnny nodded. "Yes. The Blue Light is located in that ruined monastery, just north of where Roger lives."

"What?!" Yuri and Alice said.

"You're kidding me?" added Yuri.

Johnny shook his head.

"That place has to be the most evilest place on Earth," continued Yuri. "I can't believe that it would be there."

"Lenny basically said the same thing, but that's what we saw."

Yuri shook his head. "It simply makes no sense to me. I'm going to have to ask Roger about it the next time I see him." Yuri paused for a bite to eat. "Still, I can see why that would be on your mind."

"Well, to change the subject a little bit," began Alice, "do you like the soup, Johnny?"

"Yes, Alice. It's quite good."

"Is Lenny often your cook?" asked Yuri.

"Sometimes, but I can cook for myself as well. I've learned to make some of my mom's old recipes."

"Did she cook soup as well?" asked Zachary.

"I didn't see a recipe for it," Johnny began, before he took a bite. "But I'm sure that she did." Placing his hand to his forehand, Johnny added, "I just can't remember."

"Forgive me for asking," began Yuri, "but has it been a while since you lost your mom?"

"Yeah, it has been, but," Johnny turned away, before he turned back to Yuri. "I just can't remember when Mom passed away."

"That's not a bad thing sometimes."

"Huh?"

"Sorry, I think I've said too much. Would you like another bowl of soup, Johnny?"

"No thanks. I should probably go check on Lenny and Roger. Maybe I'll have a drink at the bar? But…I wonder if it would be all right, if Jeanne came along with me?"

Yuri smiled. "Well, I think that's up to Jeanne." And turning to his daughter, he added, "Jeanne?"

"Of course!" Jeanne said with a smile. "But you know that I always help Mom clear the table."

"That's all right," her mother said, smiling. "Go and have some fun with Johnny."

"All right then!" Jeanne said, maintaining her smile. "Let me go and get changed real quick."

As Jeanne changed, Johnny waited by the front door—nervously pounding his fist into his palm. _"Every time she smiles at me, all I can think about is how I want her smile to never change. And yet, will that happen, when I tell her the truth?"_

Finally, Jeanne emerged. She was still wearing the same pink dress that, earlier, had caused Johnny to forget about everything else in the world. The only exception was that now Jeanne wore stockings and a coat. "Shall we go then, Johnny?" Jeanne asked, smiling.

"Of course!" he said, returning the smile. But at the same time, he was thinking, 'Do I really want to tell her?'

* * *

"Have a nice evening, you two!" Alice said, as Jeanne closed the door. But once the door was closed, Jeanne immediately moved her hand from the doorknob to Johnny's ass.

"Hey now!" Johnny said, blushing.

Jeanne giggled. "I wanted to do that earlier, but couldn't."

Jeanne's face—it could make Johnny forget all his problems. But this time, he would not let it. "Such a beautiful face," Johnny said, as he ran a finger over Jeanne's cheeks and nose.

Jeanne blushed. "Then perhaps you should kiss it?"

"I want to."

"Then do it!"

"But I can't."

Jeanne was absolutely thrown for a loop. "Huh?"

"I can't kiss it, until I tell you something." Johnny turned and took a couple of paces. Then, he turned back to Jeanne. "I never want to see your happiness fade, Jeanne. But I want to be honest with you."

"Honest with me?"

Johnny nodded. "I haven't lied to you or anything, but I don't think I've been as honest with you as I could be."

"Honest with me about what?"

"Will you walk with me?" Johnny asked, gesturing.

Jeanne nodded. "Sure."

While Jeanne walked next to Johnny, her mood was not the same. She did not hold his hand. And she did not grab his rear. She merely walked next to him. "What have you not been honest with me about, Johnny?"

"That girl, Shania," Johnny responded, turning to Jeanne. He could already tell by the look on her face that he was agitating her. Talking about another girl to a girl was always bad karma.

"What about her?"

"Do you remember asking me, if she was my girlfriend?"

The look became even worse, as Jeanne nodded and said, "Yes."

"I told you that she was just a friend, but I often thought of her as something more."

Jeanne turned to look at the shadow of the cross on St. Remigius' church, before she turned back to Johnny. "Did you date her?"

"No, I didn't. But before I met you, I often referred to her as my girlfriend."

"And what did I do to make you feel any different?"

"I guess, I think…I think I fell in love with you the first moment I met you."

"You think you fell in love with me?!"

Johnny was taken aback by Jeanne's tone, but still, he nodded.

"You think you fell in love with me, and yet you thought that you loved a girl, whom you weren't even dating?!"

Johnny, still worried by the tone, again nodded.

"And now you think you love me?!"

Again, Johnny nodded.

"Will you 'feel this way' over the next girl that you meet?"

"Huh?"

"Don't 'huh?' me! I asked you a simple question. Will you fall head over heels, when you meet another girl besides me?"

"Jeanne?"

"Answer the fucking question!"

Johnny's eyes grew wide, as he could never imagine Jeanne speaking to him this way. Jeanne's, by contrast, were on fire. Finally, Johnny looked her dead in the eye and said, "No."

But Jeanne's eyes remained the same. "What will you do, when you find Shania?"

"Help her."

"And if she starts flirting with you, then what?"

Johnny paused. He honestly did not know how he would react. Shania was perhaps the first girl he truly fell in love with.

"I thought so," Jeanne said, as she turned to walk away.

"Hey, wait, Jeanne! I didn't say anything!"

"Of course you didn't!" she said, as he turned back to Johnny. "You had to think for a while, before you could give me an answer."

"We all have to think for a while, Jeanne."

"Not on questions like those, we don't!" she snapped back, while she left Johnny alone in the cold Domremy night air.

Smoke from the patrons in St. Jehanne's bar seemed to blow in the opposite direction from Johnny. But perhaps this was due to the fact that Johnny was sitting in the corner of the bar that was away from everyone else. While other patrons enjoyed themselves, Johnny stared into his glass of lager beer—his fifth. Johnny sighed, as he watched the beer bubbles ascend.

"What's wrong, Master?" Lenny asked, as he started to pull up a barstool next to him.

Johnny did not even notice Lenny enter the room, nor did he notice him, when he prepared to sit next to him. Johnny was stunned, but he simply said, "Hey, Lenny."

Lenny ordered a drink from Jacques, before he once again turned to Johnny. "I can tell that you're not yourself tonight, Master."

"What makes you say that?"

"I can tell that you're drinking to forget. And I can also tell that Jeanne's not with you, and I suspect that she's the reason why you're drinking to forget."

Johnny took a large gulp. "Pretty much."

"What happened?"

"I told her the truth. You know, about Shania and all of that."

"And that made her mad?"

Johnny looked at Lenny dumbfounded. "Well, you don't see her here, now do you?"

Lenny laughed. "No, I don't."

"That's not very funny, Lenny," Johnny said, short and to the point.

"Forgive me, it's not." Lenny took a sip of his drink—a mixture of blended whiskey, water, ice, and an olive. "I guess the only reason why I laughed is that I never expected this reaction from her. I guess I don't understand young girls much anymore."

Johnny turned from Lenny to stare at the contents of his beer.

"But at least you got something off your chest," Lenny added, trying to cheer up Johnny.

"Yeah, but I sure didn't get the reaction that I wanted," Johnny said, with a gulp.

"What did she say to you?"

"She told me basically that how does she know that I wouldn't 'fall head over heels' for the next cute girl that I meet? I told her how I considered Shania to be my girlfriend, even though she never technically was, and now I have these feelings for Jeanne." Johnny paused to take another gulp. "In other words, she wants to know how is it that I won't fall for some other girl that I meet, while I'm in some other town."

"Well, would you?"

Johnny looked Lenny in the eye. "No."

Lenny nodded. "I see." And pausing to take a sip, he added, "Then if that's what you want, she'll come back to you."

"Huh?"

"Women are just like that, Master. They love to test us. You didn't do anything wrong."

Johnny nodded, sadly. He stared at his beer again briefly, before he returned to Lenny. "Lenny?"

"Yes?"

"You said that Jeanne would come back to me."

"Yes?"

"But what if she doesn't? What if she truly doesn't give two shits about me anymore?"

"Then if she wants to continue to have that attitude, then the hell with her. Don't force yourself to be someone different then who you truly are, Master, just to impress somebody. That will only destroy you in the long run."

A part of Johnny wanted to cry, as he turned to Lenny and said, "Thank you."


	13. Johnny Garland and Jeanne Hyuga

_From the first time we touched with our eyes,  
only magic could take away my heart.  
I am always afraid of my heart.  
So lay beside me now,  
and tell me lies,  
sweet lies,  
as long as it's not about love_—

"As Long as it's Not About Love"—Ronnie James Dio

**Darkness and Light**

**Chapter XIII**

At 11:00 the next morning, Johnny, Lenny, and Roger gathered at the Hygua residence. During their previous gatherings, those present usually had some sort of alcoholic beverage. But at this time of day, Yuri said that it was too early for an alcoholic beverage, so instead, he drank tea. The others followed suite. For Johnny, he was happy to drink tea instead of beer. He had a hangover, and the other members in the room could tell it. Jeanne was also present. However, she did not sit by Johnny. Instead, she chose to remain by her mother. However, the two did make eye contact, but the feelings of passion—at least from Jeanne's perspective—were not there. Johnny would look at her like a lost puppy, while she merely turned her head.

"Johnny, are you all right this morning?" Yuri said with a smile. "You look a bit ill."

Johnny nodded. "Yeah, I'm fine. I just stayed in the pub a bit too long."

Yuri chuckled. "Well, it happens. But I guess that Jeanne didn't want to stay there as long as you did last night, since she came home early. Not that I'm complaining, of course," Yuri added with a smile.

Jeanne turned to her father and returned the smile. "Thank you, Daddy."

Johnny, however, continued to look at Jeanne, but she would not acknowledge him.

"Well," continued Yuri, "I don't think we came here to talk about that. Instead, I want to talk about what Johnny told me last night. He told me how the Fountain of Sukune revealed that the Blue Light of Earth is in the Nemeton Monastery." Yuri paused to sip his tea. "And that simply makes no sense to me."

"Why's that?" asked Roger.

"Well, it's got to be the most evilest place on Earth. How in the world could anything good be there?"

Roger nodded. "True, true, but it was once a monastery founded by St. Daniel of Wales. I think that would explain why the Blue Light of Earth is there." Roger paused to take a sip of his tea. "But it is ironic that it would be there, of all the places."

"I take it that you're going there?" Yuri asked, gesturing to Johnny, Lenny, and Roger.

"Yes," Lenny replied with a nod. "Wherever the master goes, I go. However, I am going to prepare for this journey."

"Prepare?"

Again, Lenny nodded. "Yes, I'm going to fast for three days. I want to be spiritually well, before I enter a place such as Nemeton Monastery."

"What about you, Roger?"

Roger took another sip. "I may be old, Yuri, but these two still need a guide."

Yuri nodded, and finally turned to Johnny. "What about you, Johnny?"

Johnny finished the last of his tea. Yet, as he did so, he thought about the reason why he was here—to help Shania. If Jeanne had a problem with that, then that was simply her problem. "I'm the reason that we're on this journey, Yuri, and I'm not turning back now. I may not care about Shania the way that I used to…"

"The way that you used to?" interjected Yuri.

Johnny nodded. "At one time I considered Shania to be my girlfriend, even though we never dated."

Yuri chuckled. "That sounds kind of stupid."

"A lot of things I've done are stupid, but that really doesn't matter. I still care about Shania as a human being, and no one, regardless of who they are, deserves to be infected with malice, where they can't control their own emotions."

For the first time during Johnny's, Lenny's, and Roger's visit to the Hyuga home, Jeanne looked at Johnny. But she looked at him in a different light. She was stunned by what he said. Johnny did not come across as someone who would exchange one girl for another, but as someone who was willing to help out a fellow human being. _"Johnny…I need to talk to him."_

"Yuri?" Alice said.

"Yes?"

"I'm worried about something."

"What is it?"

"It's Roger."

"Me?" interjected Roger.

Alice nodded. "Yes, it's your age, and the place you're going to. I know that place well. If something was to happen to you…"

"That's a risk that I'm willing to take," interjected Roger.

"No, Roger," Alice said, before she turned to Yuri. "Yuri, I would like it, if you went with them."

"What?!" Yuri said.

The other members were just as stunned, but they did not say anything.

"Alice," Yuri began, "I'm not in my twenties anymore. I'm far too old for that stuff."

"You're a year younger than me," interjected Lenny.

"But you're not married, and have two kids. Besides, I don't even know where this Blue Light of Earth is anyway."

"It's at the altar," Roger said. "The same place where you fought Albert Simon."

"I remember that area," Alice said.

"Then why do you want me to go down there?" asked Yuri.

"If something was to happen to Roger, then you could guide them. There's more to it than that, but…"

"What is it?"

"I…I can't talk about it right now."

Yuri sighed, and slapped his thigh. "Then when can you talk about it?"

"Sometime later." Alice turned to the other members of the party and added, "I need to talk to Yuri alone about this."

Johnny nodded. "I understand, Alice."

Alice returned the nod and said, "Thank you," before she added, "So when do you leave for Wales?"

"Tomorrow morning."

"I see. Well, I'm sure you'll hear back from us before then."

"Thank you," Johnny said, before he stood up, and turned to his companions. "I'm going to take off for a while. I'd like to go for a walk. I assume that I will see all of you back at the inn soon?"

"Fairly soon, when do you plan on going back to the inn, Master?"

"I'm not sure. But it won't be long."

As Johnny prepared to leave, a voice stopped him. The voice belonged to Jeanne, who simply called his name. Earlier Jeanne's voice would have made his knees shake. But as he spoke with Yuri and Alice, his mission became his focus. Jeanne was still beautiful, but he was no longer falling head over heels for her. Still, it was hard for Jeanne's voice not to make his heart beat. "Yes?"

Jeanne stood up and said, "Can I come with you?"

_"Now this is interesting,"_ Johnny said. _"Last night, she got all pissed off at me, and now she wants to come along with me. But maybe this reflects what Lenny said to me last night_…Sure."

* * *

The midday sun sparkled against the ice on the trees—causing some of it to melt—as Johnny and Jeanne walked in the direction of Domremy's field. The key word to describe the two at this moment was 'walked.' The two did not hold hands, but they did walk next to each other. "Well, Jeanne, I guess I really only have one question to ask you right now."

"And what's that?"

"Well, you got pretty pissed off at me last night. So I'm just surprised that you wanted to come walking with me. I guess then my question is: Why are you here right now?"

Jeanne sighed. "I'm sorry, Johnny. I guess I over reacted a bit last night. A lot of the men in this village are only interested in how a girl looks, and I would like men to see me for something else other than my looks. When you were talking about Shania, and describing how you once thought of her as your 'girlfriend,' even though you weren't actually dating, you just made me think that you're no different than the other men in this village."

"That wasn't how I saw it, Jeanne. I mean, New York's full of pretty girls. If that was my attitude towards Shania, I would have forgotten about her months ago. By referring to her as my 'girlfriend,' I just wasn't thinking realistically. It was all very stupid." Johnny turned to look at the trees from the forest outside of Domremy. "But none of that really matters now. What matters is that she's a person in trouble, and I'm going to help her." And turning back to Jeanne, he added, "Besides, I'm sure that she saved my ass plenty of times, when we were on that journey together."

Jeanne smiled. "Johnny?"

"Yes?"

"May I ask you something?"

"Sure."

"If you found out that Shania had feelings for you that were similar to the feelings you once had for her what would you do?"

"That depends on one person."

"Who?"

"You," Johnny said, pointing to Jeanne. "If you will have me, I'll be yours."

Jeanne blushed, and turned her head. "But you live all the way in America."

"I have means to travel. Jeanne, look at me."

Jeanne turned to him.

"I have never met anyone like you before, Jeanne."

Jeanne continued to smile, but she had to test Johnny. "What about Shania?"

"I never kissed Shania. I never danced with Shania. And Shania's voice could never make my heart skip a beat."

Keeping her smile, Jeanne said, "Johnny?"

"Yes?"

"I want you to do what you think is right for you. I don't want to be a factor in determining what you can and cannot have." Jeanne turned away again and locked her fingers. "But I want you to promise me one thing."

"What's that?"

"Whatever you decide, please come back here to see me at least once. If it is possible, please try to come back here before Christmas."

"I will."

Jeanne turned to him and said, "Thank you…_Somehow I think he's going to come back here on a permanent basis."_

_

* * *

  
_

Yuri stood with his hand against the wall, watching Alice pour a glass of water from the faucet. "Well, Alice, Roger and Lenny are gone. Jeanne has taken off with Johnny. And Zack is out sledding. So why is it that you want me to go to the Nemeton Monastery so badly?"

Alice turned off the faucet. "Have you noticed our daughter lately?" she asked, without turning to Yuri.

"I notice our daughter every day. Why?"

"Have you seen how she acts toward Johnny?"

"Yeah, I can tell that she likes him. I like Johnny too. He seems like a good kid."

Alice took a sip of water, and turned to Yuri. "Johnny is not like anyone Jeanne has met before."

"Yeah, he's American. You don't meet too many Americans in a village in Northeastern France."

"There's more to it than that, Yuri."

"Like what?"

"Most of the boys that Jeanne has met growing up in the village, particularly in the last couple of years, are only after one thing from her—her looks."

Yuri pounded his fist into his palm. "They won't be able to see her looks, after I'm done with them, since they won't be able to see them."

Alice giggled and took another sip of water, before she became serious again. "But Johnny is different."

Yuri nodded. "Yeah, he seems that way too—maybe that's why I like him so much. I think that must be due to him experiencing a lot in his young life."

"Kind of like you?" smiled Alice.

Yuri returned the smile. "Yeah, kind of like me…Although I must admit that I did want to strip you nude, and bang you in China."

Alice giggled. "If you were like Johnny, maybe I would have let you."

Yuri turned away. "Shuddap," he said with a grin.

"But seriously," continued Alice, "I'm worried about him and our daughter."

Yuri returned to Alice. "Explain?"

"I don't want Jeanne to end up like Cateline."

"Cateline?"

Alice nodded. "She continued to mourn for her boyfriend ten years after he was killed. I don't want to see Jeanne end up like that."

"I seriously doubt Jeanne will end up like that."

"But she could."

Yuri sighed, and turned away, before he turned back to Alice. "Even if something does happen to Johnny, which I hope never does happen, there're plenty of guys in this village Jeanne could fall in love with."

"You're thinking of that from someone who's nearly 40, not from someone who's a teenager. When you're a teenager, everything is a big deal. If Johnny was lost, it would be bad. But it would be ten-times as bad in Jeanne's mind."

Seeing a copper coin on the dining room table, Yuri took it and spun it. "I think that you're right." Then he chuckled, and turned to Alice. "I guess I didn't really have much of a teenage life, since I lost both my parents before I was even a teenager."

Alice smiled. "That's why I'm here to keep you in line. But you understand what I'm saying, don't you?"

Yuri nodded. "Yeah, I understand." He pounded his fist into his palm and sighed. "I'll tell you what, Alice. I'll accompany Roger, Lenny, and Johnny through the Nemeton Monastery, even though I don't want to. I'll do it for my daughter. But as for their quest to help this girl, Shania, they're on their own."

Alice smiled and nodded. "Thank you, Yuri."


	14. Lady Evil

_Blessed be God.  
Blessed be His Holy Name.  
Blessed be Jesus Christ,  
true God and true man.  
Blessed be the name of Jesus.  
Blessed be His Most Sacred Heart.  
Blessed be His Most Precious Blood.  
Blessed be Jesus,  
in the Most Holy Sacrament of the Altar.  
Blessed be the Holy Spirit,  
the Paraclete.  
Blessed be the Great Mother of God,  
Mary Most Holy.  
Blessed be her Holy and Immaculate Conception.  
Blessed be her glorious Assumption.  
Blessed be the name Mary, Virgin and Mother.  
Blessed be St. Joseph,  
her most chaste spouse.  
Blessed be God,  
in His Angels and in His Saints_—

"Divine Praises"—Father Luigi Felici

_Lady evil, evil,  
she's a magical, mystical woman.  
Lady evil,  
evil on my mind,  
she's the queen of the night_—

"Lady Evil"—Black Sabbath

**Darkness and Light**

**Chapter XIV**

On the following day, a little after midday, Johnny, Lenny, Roger, and Yuri arrived in Wales. After Roger landed Bacon Jet, he turned to Lenny and said, "You say that you're wanting to fast, right, Lenny?"

Lenny nodded. "Yeah, for at least a couple of days, if that's okay with you. I want to be spiritually well."

"I remember all this fasting stuff," Yuri said. "My mom sometimes did it, but she said that I didn't have to do it. If you want to fast that's fine, but I want to get down there and waste whatever bastard it is, so I can go home."

"You're thinking like someone in their 20s, Yuri. Not like someone who's nearly 40."

"No, I'm thinking like someone who doesn't like to wait around."

"Give me a couple of days."

Yuri turned, pounded his fist into his palm, and sighed. "Fine," he said, before turning back to Lenny. "I'll give you two days."

Lenny nodded. "Thank you."

"I'll make sure to prepare a dish that caters to fasting," added Roger.

"Thank you, Roger," Lenny said. "And Master?" Lenny added, as he turned to Johnny.

"Yes?"

"I think you should fast as well."

Johnny was stunned. "It's not yet Lent, Lenny."

"Doesn't matter. Fasting will be good for you. You'll realize what good it will do for you, before we enter that God-awful place," Lenny said, gesturing to the place where Nemeton Monastery is located. "It would also be good for you to go to church."

"Church?!"

Lenny nodded. "Umhmm, this is a Protestant country, so I'm sure you can find an English church fairly easily."

"St. David's Cathedral isn't too far from here," Roger said. "It's Church of England."

"Where's it at?" asked Johnny.

"Just down the hill from here," Roger said, pointing. "It's an old, old church…"

"Older than you, Roger?" interjected Yuri.

"Yes, older than me…"

"Oh, damn! Then this must be a really old church."

"Yes, I went to this church, when I was in my youth. It was originally a Catholic church, but during the Reformation of Henry VIII, it broke communion with Rome to follow Henry."

"Is the church open?" asked Johnny.

Roger nodded. "It is."

"I'll go there then," Johnny said, as he began to walk away. "It's been a while since I've been to church anyway."

After Johnny left, Lenny turned to Roger. "Roger, do you know if there's a Catholic church around here?"

"There is a Catholic church that was built about fifty years ago called Our Lady and St. Winefride in the style of the gothic churches of old. And there is also the chapel in my home, which is Catholic." Roger paused to turn to Yuri. "What about you, Yuri?"

Yuri blinked. "What about me?"

"I'm sure that you go to church. I know that Alice is active in the Domremy parish."

"She is, but I often don't go to church. I was raised a Christian, or more specifically a Catholic, but since my time drifting around China, I've taken on other beliefs as well."

"So you're a heretic?" smiled Roger.

Yuri returned the smile. "Yeah, some might call me that."

Roger continued to smile. "Well, somehow I doubt you're completely a heretic. If you want to come to my chapel, feel free."

"Yeah, I might stop on in."

* * *

"_I haven't been to church since Easter,"_ Johnny said, as he approached the Cathedral of St. David. St. David's Cathedral was different from Johnny's home parish in New York—the Cathedral of St. John the Divine. While the Cathedral of St. John the Divine looked like an old church, it was in fact less than forty years old; whereas St. David's Cathedral was built in the twelfth century. But one feature that was in harmony with the exterior of St. John the Divine and St. David's was the red door. During the middle ages, churches were safe havens for friend and foe alike, and the red door served as an identifier for a church. Inside the church, Johnny dipped his fingers in the holy water, and crossed himself. The interior of the church was certainly prepared for Christmas, with a Nativity scene near the Communion rail. Johnny sat in a pew that was near the altar. Next to the altar were some statues. To the right was St. David of Wales, and to the left—in the middle—was Christ, and on Christ's right was St. Peter, and on Christ's left was St. Paul. Above the altar, Johnny stared at the old crucifix. The features on the corpus made Johnny think that this crucifix might have been made about 200 years ago. And behind the crucifix was a tabernacle. "_God,"_ Johnny began, as he crossed himself, and looked up at the crucifix, "_from what I understand, I'm going into the 'Devil's den.' Please help me be able to survive. I want to keep my promise to Jeanne."_ After completing this prayer, Johnny added three more prayers: Our Father, Hail Mary, and the Doxology.

Johnny left his pew, and bowed before the crucifix as he prepared to leave the church. But before he could leave, a priest entered the sanctuary. The priest was a man in his mid-fifties with a trim brown beard that contained hints of gray. His hair color matched his beard, but the top portion of his head was bald.

"Hello there, young man," the priest said in his distinctly British accent. "This is the first time I've ever seen you here before. Are you visiting Aberystwyth, or have you recently moved here?"

"I'm a visitor," Johnny replied.

The priest chuckled. "Obviously, I can tell. You speak with an American accent. I will assume that you're from America?"

"Yes, Father. I am."

"I see. Well, what brought you to Great Britain?"

"Well…_Perhaps it would be in my best interest not to tell the father why I'm here…_Well, I'm a detective from New York, and I was hired by someone, I can't exactly say who, to do an investigation." Johnny paused to turn his head, before he turned back to the priest. "_I'd better milk this for all that it's worth…_I must say that it was an honor for them to hire me, when I'm sure they could have found someone in Wales or England to take the job."

"Absolutely! But you seem so young. But I suppose that being a detective in New York gives you plenty of experience with tough cases?"

"Sure. New York is very similar, at least in size, to London."

The priest nodded. "I can imagine. By the way, how long do you plan to stay in Wales?"

"I'm not really sure. One part of my job, which I can mention, is that I need to investigate the Nemeton Monastery."

The priest folded his arms behind his back, and began to pace back and forth in front of Johnny. "You know, many of my parishioners have referred to that place as the 'Devil's Den.'"

Johnny nodded. "I've heard similar things, Father. That's one of the reasons why I came here."

The priest smirked. "It's always good to come to church, but if I were you, I think I would have come here as well, before I visited that place—even if everything my parishioners have said was made up."

"What exactly have you heard, Father?"

"I've heard people talk about ghost and demons living in that place. Like I said, I don't know if it's true or not, but I'd still be careful."

Johnny nodded. "I will, Father." But as he looked at the priest, Johnny could tell that there was something wrong with the father. The priest looked at him like he wanted to say something, and something was holding him back. "Something wrong, Father?"

"Well…you might think this is foolish of me, but…"

"Yes?"

"Well, there is something that I'd like to give you."

"What's that?"

"Wait right here. I'll be back in a minute."

About a minute later, the priest returned carrying a rosary and a bottle. He led Johnny to the holy water font and blessed the rosary. Then he filled the bottle with holy water. "You may think I'm a bit superstitious," the priest began, while he handed the bottle of holy water and the rosary to Johnny, "but the stories said about that place go back to the last thirty years. I'd be careful."

"Thank you, Father. I will."

* * *

Two days later, on a cold-windy day in Wales, Yuri secured a rope ladder on the top of a huge gash in the earth. The other side held the ruins of Nemeton Monastery. "This is where Albert Simon's temple crashed into the earth," Yuri said, as he pounded the last spike into the ground.

"Yeah, that's what Lenny told me," Johnny said.

"He did, huh?"

Lenny nodded, as he adjusted a knapsack over his shoulders. "Yeah, I told him about your confrontation with Albert Simon, and that alien being, or whatever it was, that he summoned to try and defeat Rasputin."

"That was 15 years ago," Yuri said, as he began his descent down the ladder. Before he approached the end of the temple's cut, Yuri added, "This is one place I never thought that I would ever be at again."

"Same here," Roger added—the final member of the team to reach the base of the cliff. "But I brought a little protection with us." From his monastic robe, Roger removed a tiny box that contained a piece of the consecrated Host.

Lenny genuflected before the Eucharist, and crossed himself. "Christ be with us."

Yuri nodded. "Yes, but let's get this over with quick." Turning to the entrance of Nemeton Monastery, he added, "I don't like this place."

As the four prepared to enter the cavern, they heard a moan. The moan came across that someone, or something, did not want them to enter.

Roger and Lenny crossed themselves.

And Johnny said, "What was that?"

"The monsters that roam this place," Yuri said. "That's their malice. It's for reasons like that, that I don't like this place." Turning to Lenny, Yuri added, "Lenny, you got the lantern?"

"Yeah," Lenny replied, while he opened the knapsack.

Yuri took the lantern from Lenny, and lit it. Then he turned to the entrance, sighed, and motioned his party forward. "Okay, let's go."

"Wait, Yuri," Roger said.

"Yeah, Roger?"

"Let me stand next to you."

"Huh? Why?"

Roger took out the piece of the consecrated Host, and held it like a shield. "You'll see."

"I don't understand. You should stand behind us."

"No, I should stand next to you." Roger smiled. "Trust me. I'll be fine."

Yuri gave a nod and sighed. "Oh, all right." But then he turned to Johnny and Lenny. "Make sure to keep an eye on Roger, okay?"

Lenny and Johnny nodded. "Will do," they said, at almost the same time.

* * *

Along Nemeton's walls were various Christian images: Christ, the Virgin, saints, and angels. Yet these holy images were desecrated—either smeared in blood, sliced with a sword, or disfigured with the heads of monsters. Besides these common images throughout the monastery, another feature remained—the moans of the monsters.

"There's one thing I don't understand," Johnny began. "I can hear these monsters, but why aren't they attacking us?"

"It's the power of Christ," Roger replied. "His presence is protecting us."

The party continued deeper and deeper into Nemeton's interior. Eventually, they reached a room with a painting of Christ surrounded by young children. The painting, like the other Christian objects in Nemeton Monastery, was severely damaged. However, one portion of the painting remained untouched—a portion written in Latin. Because Johnny knew French, he knew some Latin. But he was having trouble translating the words.

"Hey, Roger," Johnny said.

"Yes?" he replied, stopping to turn to Johnny.

"What does this say?" Johnny asked, pointing to the letters.

"Um," Roger began, while he walked over to the painting. "I need a little extra light." Turning to Yuri he said, "Yuri, would you please bring the lantern over here?"

"We really don't have time for this, Roger?" Yuri said.

"It will only take a moment."

Yuri sighed. "Very well," he said, before he carried the lantern over.

"'Quos cum videret Iesus indigne tulit et ait illis sinite parvulos venire ad me et ne prohibueritis eos talium est enim regnum Dei—Evangelium Secundum Sanctus Marcum,'" Roger said, as he ran his finger along the letters. "In English that means, 'Suffer the little children to come unto me, and forbid them not. For such is the kingdom of God—the Gospel According to Saint Mark.' Obviously, those are the words of Christ from Mark's Gospel."

"Huh?" Johnny said.

"What do you mean, 'Huh?' I just told you that those are Jesus' words from St. Mark's Gospel."

"No, not that, I thought I heard something else."

"Something else?" asked Lenny.

Johnny nodded. "Yeah, it sounded like my name. Like someone was calling me."

"I didn't hear anything." But almost immediately after Lenny finished his sentence, he heard a voice to. A voice that was calling his name. "Wait a minute!" he said with a gesture. "I heard something too. It sounded like someone was calling my name."

"I heard it also. And it sounded like the same voice."

"Guys, be careful!" Yuri said. "This place is full of evil! Demons of all kinds will try to mimic voices to steal away your soul."

But Johnny and Lenny seemed to ignore Yuri. The voice that they heard. It sounded so familiar. They just could not put their finger on whom it might be. Finally, after hearing the voice for a third time, Johnny said, "Dad?"

"Dad?" responded Lenny.

"Yeah, doesn't it sound like him?"

Lenny tried to listen more closely. "Yeah…It does kind of sound like him. Is that you, Master Graham?"

Realizing that Johnny and Lenny were being led away, Yuri turned to Roger to act. "Roger, raise your Host."

Roger nodded, and raised the portion of the Eucharist. He walked in front of Lenny and Johnny, while keeping the Host held high. Whatever was talking to Johnny and Lenny now began to shriek and gurgle. The screeching brought Johnny and Lenny out of their trance.

Yuri breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank God, literally."

Johnny and Lenny turned to him.

"Are you two all right?"

"I think so," Lenny said.

"Yeah," Johnny replied, before he turned to where the voice once came from. "I really thought that was my dad."

Yuri nodded. "I know that you did. That happened in here once before."

"Really?" Roger said.

Again Yuri nodded. "Yes," he said, before he turned to Lenny. "Karin, you remember her, don't you?"

"Wasn't she that lieutenant in the German Army?"

Once again Yuri nodded. "Yeah, she came down here with us to get the Émigré Manuscript, when Nicolai requested that we get it for him. You remember; you were with him?"

"Yeah, I remember."

"Well, while she was down here, she thought she heard her grandmother calling her." Yuri paused to look down the corridor. "That's another reason why I don't like this place."

* * *

Finally, the party reached the Great Altar of Nemeton Monastery. Perhaps, on this altar, St. Daniel of Wales once celebrated mass? In any case, the altar itself was in good condition, but the large cross behind it looked as though someone had tried to shatter it.

"Okay, we're here," Yuri said. "So where is this Blue Light of Earth anyway?"

"I think it's behind the altar," Roger said. "At least that's what I think I saw."

Yuri nodded and said, "Johnny, why don't you come with me. You probably know more about how to operate these things than I do."

Johnny followed Yuri, and the two looked behind the altar. Johnny, however, could not see anything. "Nothing's here. Somehow I just suspected it wouldn't be behind the altar. It would seem as though anyone could find it then."

"Keep looking," Roger said. "The altar represents Calvary. It's one of the most important items in a church."

Johnny, reluctantly, continued the search behind the altar, while Yuri helped him. Eventually, the two stumbled on a piece of stone that was missing from the floor.

"Well, I'll be damned," Johnny muttered.

"Pull it back," Yuri said.

Johnny did so, and as he did so, he could see it—the pure blue light, the Blue Light of Earth.

"It's so beautiful," Yuri said.

"Yeah," Johnny said, while staring into the light. "It is."

"Well, activate it, so we can get out of here."

Johnny waved his hand over it. This was how he was able to activate it before. But this time, it would not activate. "Something's wrong."

"What is it?"

"I don't know. It should be working, but it's not."

"Maybe you did something wrong?"

"No. This is how I've always done it before."

"Huh?" Yuri said, looking down at Johnny and the blue light, before turning to Roger. "Roger, do you think you know what's wrong with it?"

"I don't know. Let me see."

With the Host still in his hand, Roger ventured forward with Lenny behind him. Behind the altar, Roger could see the Blue Light of Earth. He motioned his hand over it, just as Johnny had done earlier.

"I already tried that, Roger," Johnny said, "and it didn't work."

"I realize that. But I had to check it out myself as well. I wanted to see something."

"See something?" Yuri asked.

"Yes," Roger replied with a nod. "I wanted to see why it isn't working."

"And do you know why?" asked Lenny.

Again, Roger nodded. "Someone has sealed it."

"Sealed it?" Johnny said.

But before Roger could respond, the party heard a chuckle—a female chuckle.

"Who's there?" Lenny said.

A ball of energy responded to Lenny's question, which was followed by another, as the party retreated behind the altar. When the volley stopped, Roger raised the Host.

"You seem to have a good grip on Christ," the woman said, whose face the party could not see.

"He guards us from your touch," Roger said.

"That volley was to make you drop the Host," the woman said, as she began to step forward. "It's just too bad that I failed." Through the lantern, the party was able to see the woman for the first time. She was short, old, and ugly. Her face was horribly scarred—like someone infected with smallpox. On the positive side, her hair was tied in a perfect bun.

"My God, is she ugly!" Johnny said.

"Hmph!" the woman said, before she flashed a grin, but her grin only added to her hideous appearance—her teeth were rotten.

"I know who that woman is," Yuri said.

"You do?" said Lenny.

Yuri nodded. "Her name's Arcane Olga. She's a witch, and a very powerful one at that. But she's also very, very dead…"

"Well, that's pretty obvious," interjected Johnny. "All you have to do is look at her."

"She aligned herself with Albert Simon 15 years ago," continued Yuri, "and we defeated her. Olga!" Yuri began, while he took a step closer. "What are you doing here?"

"I wish I could have eliminated you and Lord Bacon 15 years ago," she said.

"Who? Me?" Roger said, while he pointed to himself.

"Not you!" Olga replied with a look of disgust. "And I'm NOT GOING ANYWHERE!!"

The party was stunned by Olga's sudden change in demeanor. All but Roger Bacon, who seemed to know why. Roger lowered the Eucharist. He knew that he could raise it again, if Olga tried to attack. "Are you the reason why we can't activate the Blue Light of Earth?"

Olga's original demeanor returned. "Yes," she said with a grin. "You can't activate it as long as I'm still alive."

"Or whatever," murmured Johnny.

"Sounds good," Yuri said, while he pounded his fist into his palm. "I'll send you back to Hell!"

Olga chuckled and began to levitate. "You're welcome to try!" Olga flew over the party, while balls of negative energy descended from her hands. Lenny led Roger to safety behind the altar, and they were followed by Johnny and Yuri. From his coat pocket, Johnny removed a large hunting knife.

"That's an impressive looking knife," Yuri said. "But I don't think it will do much good against Olga."

Lenny chuckled. "Just wait, Yuri."

Yuri watched, as Johnny channeled his energy into the blade. And the blade grew, taking on the appearance of a long sword.

"Damn!" Yuri said.

"Now we fight!" Johnny said. And Johnny charged from the altar. He swung his energy blade at the witch, but his blows only cut through thin air. "Damn it!" he said, before he murmured, "I can't even hit this bitch!"

But Olga overheard him. She grinned and descended to the earth. "Well, I'll make it easy for you. I'll just stand right here and won't movie an inch."

Johnny was confused. And as Yuri and Lenny prepared to leave the altar, they were also confused.

"Something's going on here," Yuri said. "She wouldn't let Johnny strike her, unless she knew something."

"I know," added Lenny.

"Lenny?" Roger said.

"Yes, Roger?"

Roger broke off a piece of the Host, and handed it to Lenny. "Take this with you. You might need it."

Lenny gave Roger a look. "I don't understand."

Roger smiled. "You will, when the time comes."

A little further away from Roger, Lenny, and Yuri, a stare down took place between Johnny and Olga.

"Well, boy," Olga began, "aren't you going to strike me? Or are you just going to stand there holding that shiny blade?"

"_Something's odd here,"_ Johnny said. "_Why is she just going to intentionally let me hit her? I'll strike her, but quickly move away."_ And Johnny followed through with this strategy. He swung his blade at Olga, and quickly jumped away. But Olga kept her word. She did not counterattack. But she was not hurt. Johnny struck her, yet she showed no flesh wounds.

"What's the matter, boy?" Olga said. "I said that I wouldn't move."

"_I know that I hit her! Something's wrong here."_

"I know that he hit her, Yuri," Lenny said. "I'm certain of it."

"I'm certain of it too. Something's going on here."

Johnny swung his sword again, and this time he did not back up. Now he discovered why it looked as though he never struck Olga before. Olga seemed to be protected by some sort of invisible force.

"What the hell?" Lenny said.

Yuri nodded. "It's a shield. Rasputin had a similar shield, when we fought him, and I broke through it." Yuri stepped forward. "Johnny," he said, "step aside. I'll break through." And turning to Olga, he added, "If I were you, I wouldn't just sit there." After that sentence, Yuri crossed his forearms, and held them over his face. This was the gesture he used just before he morphed into a monster. Yuri's body began to change. He no longer resembled a human, but the monster Amon.

Johnny gasped. He has seen Shania morph before, but Shania's fusion monsters could not a candle to what Yuri had morphed into—a beast that looked to be covered in full plated armor, with wings, and purple eyes.

Lenny was surprised as well. He had seen Yuri fuse before, but those monsters were nothing compared to what now stood before him.

Olga, however, seemed to be amused. "Ah! The mighty Amon! The monster of Lord Bacon!"

"_I don't get it,"_ Lenny said. "_Shouldn't she be just a little bit frightened? Or at least trying to defend herself?"_

Rising to the heavens, Yuri swooped down at Olga like a hawk attempting to catch its prey. But instead of talons, Yuri cocked his fist.

But Olga did not move. And as Yuri delivered a blow that would have crushed through the shield of Rasputin, Yuri found himself on his back. Whatever protected Olga, ricocheted him. From the ground, Yuri morphed back into his human form. He was absolutely stunned. "That's not possible," he said with a gasp. "That's simply not possible!"

Olga smirked.

"I broke through the shield of someone protected by one of the most powerful demons! This is simply not possible!"

"It is, when you think about it," Olga said.

Yuri shot her a look.

The witch chuckled. "You see, I am protected from demonic energy or malice, and that's why your little energy sword," she said, pointing to Johnny, "and Amon's power," she added, turning to Yuri, "won't work."

"Is that so?" Yuri said with a grin, just before he struck Olga with a right cross. "That seemed to work okay," Yuri added, as he watched Olga fall from the blow.

But Olga quickly bounced back up. A trickle of blood descended from her lip. She smiled, as she wiped the blood away. "Yes, your punches will hurt me," she said, as she began to levitate. "It's too bad that I won't give you the opportunity to land anymore of them."

Olga quickly took the sky, and once again the volley of negative energy descended from her hands. And like before, Yuri, Lenny, and Johnny retreated to the safety of the altar.

"We'll never be able to catch her," Yuri said. "Even if we were able to land a blow, we wouldn't be able to land the one that really matters, because she'd simply fly away."

Johnny took all this in, while he moved his hand along his coat pocket. It was there that he discovered something—the bottle of holy water the priest gave him. And Johnny began to wonder, "_Olga said she could absorb demonic energy or malice, but what if…?"_ Removing the bottle of holy water, Johnny left his companions and charged on to the battlefield.

"Master?!"

"Go with him, Lenny," Roger said. "I think I sense his plan. If Olga falls to the ground, immediately place that portion of the Host I gave you into her mouth."

"Huh?"

Roger smiled. "You'll see what I mean."

Lenny did not understand Roger, but he followed Johnny on to the battlefield.

"I don't get it, Roger," Yuri said.

"I'll explain it later. Just go help your companions."

Yuri joined his companions on the frontlines, and the three of them dodged the balls of negative energy. Johnny may not have been much of a dancer at St. Jehanne's, but he did an excellent job dancing around the balls of negative energy.

"She's got to come in close," Johnny said.

Olga, however, seemed to overhear Johnny. "Oh, so that's what you want." She descended to the earth like a plan taking a nose dive.

Johnny waited patiently. His palm sweated over his holy water bottle, but he was not going to lose his grip on it. Finally, Johnny made his move. He splashed holy water on Olga in the shape of a cross, just as he had seen priests do on Holy Saturday mass.

Olga screeched. She fell to the earth, and covered her face. Perhaps some of the holy water got in her eyes.

"Now, Lenny!" shouted Roger.

Lenny nodded. He placed the Host in Olga's mouth. Olga gurgled, just before her body combusted.

Lenny gasped. "My God!"

"It's what I knew would happen," Roger said, as he left the altar.

"You knew what?" asked Yuri.

"That Olga would combust, if she tasted the very Body of Christ. There's a reason why creatures of evil hate pictures of Christ and the saints. In their mind, they see the actual person commanding them to leave. The Eucharist, of course, is most deadly, because it is the very embodiment of Christ. You saw Olga's change in demeanor earlier. That was due to me raising and lowering the Eucharist."

"You mean when she said, 'I'm not going anywhere'?" asked Johnny.

Roger nodded. "Correct. But let us not ponder on that right now. Johnny, if you would, activate the Blue Light of Earth."

Johnny nodded. Marching to the altar, he waved his hand over the Blue Light of Earth. Immediately, the light ascended to the heavens, and Johnny—and the members of his party—had a feeling of peace. It was as though that gentle blue light seemed to remove all of the malice in the air.

"Well, now," Roger began, "I think we'll have a pretty safe trip leaving the monastery."


	15. Johnny and Shania

**Author's Note**: Hey, everyone! Well, it's been a while since I last chatted with any of you. A lot of things get in the way of me writing chapters. But I'm here to announce that this story is approaching the end. This chapter will be a long one, but not quite as long as the last one. As always, I ask you to read and give critical reviews.

_When the world turns you away,  
a friend will not say 'no.'  
There is strength that we all have.  
It's not the strength we show.  
And in your darkest hour.  
In your darkest night.  
Whatever life will do,  
I am here for you.  
Think of me,  
wherever you are,  
when it seems like you're reaching the end.  
Call on me.  
Know in your heart,  
on one you can depend,  
I am that friend_—

"Blood Brothers"—Manowar

**Darkness and Light**

**Chapter XV**

The sky had turned a bright glowing orange, which is typical at the time of dusk, when Johnny, Lenny, Yuri, and Roger returned to the cliff that overlooked the ruins of Nemeton Monastery.

"I pray that I'll never have to go into that place again," Yuri said, as he gazed at the ruins.

"I agree," added Lenny, while he watched the evening sun sparkle on the ruins. "I knew of how bad of a place that was, but to see it with my own eyes…"

"It's enough to shorten your lifespan," continued Johnny. Then he sighed. "But I guess it's over and done with. Tomorrow we'll head for New York, but who knows where Shania is? I mean, Queens isn't exactly a small town."

"No, it's not," said Lenny. "There's got to be damn near a million people living there."

"Sweet Jesus!" Roger said. "That's like trying to find a needle in a haystack, where the haystack is like the size of London."

"I don't think you'll have any problems, Johnny," Yuri said with a smile.

"What makes you think so, Yuri?" asked Johnny.

"Well, you're a detective, aren't you?"

"Yes."

"And I take it that the actual city of New York is bigger than Queens, right?"

"Yes."

"And you've had cases in New York, right?"

"Yes."

"Then this should be pretty easy for you."

Johnny was stunned by all of Yuri's compliments.

"Plus, you did great back there," Yuri added.

"Thank you, Yuri," Johnny said, returning the smile. "I take it that you're going back to Domremy?"

"Yep! Before you guys fly off to the New World, I'd like it if you took me across the English Channel and back to France."

"That can be arranged," Roger said.

"Wonderful!" Yuri said, with a smile.

"Say, Roger," Johnny said, while he stared at the trees near Roger's home.

"Yes, Johnny?"

"Is that one church still open?"

"You mean St. David's?"

Johnny nodded.

"Yes, it's open at night."

"Good. I think I'd like to go there. Churches are very peaceful places, when you have a lot of things on your mind."

"You have a lot of things on your mind?" asked Lenny.

"Just a few things, here and there. It's nothing I can't handle, but I'd rather think about them while I'm inside a church."

Lenny nodded. "Okay then. We'll see you later."

* * *

St. David's Cathedral had something of a melancholy feel to it at night. It was beautiful, yet sad. A few candles flicked in the church below the portrait of the Holy Family, which provided the sole light inside the church. Johnny added to that light by lighting a candle. Standing over the candle, he crossed himself and prayed. "Lord God, thank you for protecting me, and all of us, in that hellish prison. The journey is almost over, yet one part remains. I need to find Shania, and I need to find her quickly. I don't know how much time the Blue Light of Earth will give me. God in Christ help me, Amen." And gazing at the portrait of the Holy Family, Johnny added, "Mary and Joseph pray for me."

* * *

At ten the next morning, Bacon Jet left Aberystwyth, Wales for its long journey across the Atlantic. But before the party could leave the Old World for the New, Bacon Jet landed in the forest outside of Domremy. As Johnny, Lenny, and Roger waved goodbye to Yuri, a part of Johnny wanted to ask Lenny and Roger to wait, so he could go and see Jeanne. "_No, I cannot do that. I have to go and help Shania."_ But as Bacon Jet was flying over Domremy, Johnny noticed the meadow. The same meadow that he and Jeanne had walked through the first time they had encountered each other. "_I'll keep my promise to you, Jeanne. I'll come back before Christmas."_

* * *

From Domremy, Bacon Jet traveled across France, until it reached the western tip of the English Channel. From there, it traveled across the Atlantic. For hours, the party only saw the vast body of the Atlantic Ocean, with the occasional fishing boat or cruise ship. Finally, after nearly six hours of flying, the party saw the torch of the Statue of Liberty in Liberty Harbor. Roger landed Bacon Jet in a private airfield—the same place he had used, when he allowed Johnny and his party to use his ship earlier in the year. It had been nearly two weeks since Johnny and Lenny had left New York for Europe, but the moment the two smelt the air coming out of New York Harbor, they knew that they were home. For Lenny, it was an adopted home, but it was home, nevertheless.

"Master," Lenny began, "should I arrange for a cab to come and take us to Queens?"

Johnny crossed his arms, and looked at the ground, before he turned to Lenny. "No. Let's take a cab back home. I need to pick up a picture of Shania. From there, let's go to Killarney's…"

"Master, I don't think that now's the time to be drinking."

"No, it's not. But it is the time to start collecting information. Here's what we know right now. When know that when we saw the Fountain of Sukune we saw an image of the King Manor. I suspect that Shania is somewhere around there. However, we need to get some additional information. Pubs are a great source for that. Unfortunately, it's illegal for alcohol to be served in the United States, and pubs are a secret. James at Killarney's, I'm sure, knows of some secret bars in that area."

Lenny nodded. "All right, that makes sense." And turning to Roger as well, he added, "Well, then, to Garland Detective Agency it is!"

* * *

"Home sweet home!" Lenny said, as he unlocked the door to Garland Detective Agency. Everything inside the home appeared to be in place as it did, when Johnny and Lenny left New York for Europe. On the kitchen counter was a copy of the _New York Times_. And reclining over a chair was Johnny's New York Yankee's jersey.

"Do you know where this photo is, Master?"

"Of course, I do," Johnny said, as he charged up the stairs to his bedroom. "It's on my dresser."

And certainly there it was. A photograph of Shania taken during their journey together by Johnny in the spring of 1929.

Johnny charged back down the stairs, and told his companions. "Okay, then. Now we can go to Killarney's."

* * *

"Well, hello boys!" James Guinness said in his distinct Irish accent. "Haven't see you boys in a while. Merry Christmas!" And turning to Roger, the bartender added, "Looks like you've got somebody new with you, and I'll be damned, if he isn't dressed like a monk!"

Roger chuckled. It is true that he was a monk, but that way of life ended centuries ago. However, he knew it was in his best interest not to talk about things like that. "No, I'm not a monk, but I find the monastic garb to be quite comfortable."

But Roger's British accent caused James to raise an eyebrow. "You English?"

"No, I'm Welsh."

"Hmm," James said, while he looked at the ground, before he returned to the party. "Well, the Welsh are okay. They're Celtic, like us. It's the English I can't stand, for the way they've fucked up my country." But soon James' demeanor returned to that of a jolly Irish man. "Well, boys, what can I get ya?"

"I'll have one of your lager beers," Johnny said.

"I'll have some blended whiskey, ice, and an olive," said Lenny.

"Got any Chardonnay?" asked Roger.

"Certainly!"

"Well, I'll have one of those."

"Be right with them."

"Say, James?" Johnny began.

"Yeah, Johnny?"

"There's something I need to ask you about, when you come back."

"Sure, no problem."

James returned a moment later with each individual's beverage—giving Johnny his beverage last. "So, what did you want to ask me?"

"You know where the King Manor is in Queens, right?"

"Aye, that I do."

"Do you know if there are any nightclubs or bars around there?"

"I know of one. I know of San Lucia's, or St. Lucy's, as it would be said in English. She's the patron saint of eyesight. And that's not a bad thing, if you're drunk, or trying to avoid the cops. It's run by some Italian immigrants—hence the name."

"Do you know the password?"

"Sure do, but why are you wanting to go there so badly?"

Johnny showed James his picture of Shania. "You see this girl?"

"I sure do! She's a pretty lass! Looks like she's got a combination of Indian and European in her."

Johnny nodded. "I'm trying to find her…"

"I would be too."

"And the last information I have on her is that she was seen around King Manor in Queens. Pubs are a great place for information, and that's why I need to go to this one."

James nodded. "I understand you, my boy. But you do realize that a lot of the patrons there will be speaking Italian and not English?"

"That's fine. I can work my way through it. I can speak French fluently."

"I can help you a little more, Johnny," added Roger. "I can speak Latin."

Again, James nodded. "All right then. The password is 'Avviti le donne protestanti che stanno rovinando il nostro divertimento,' which roughly translates into English as, 'Screw the Protestant women that are ruining our fun.'" James chuckled. "I have to admit, I couldn't agree more."

"Same here," Johnny said with a smile. "And thanks, James."

* * *

Johnny knocked on the heavy steel door of St. Lucy's. From the other side, a small window in the middle of the door opened.

"State the password," a man said in Italian.

"Avviti le donne protestanti che stanno rovinando il nostro divertimento," Johnny said. He had made his mind learn the phrase, so he could say it in perfect Italian.

With the password completed, the door was opened. "Do come in," the man said, but also in Italian.

The interior of St. Lucy's revealed a bar that was similar, in many respects, to Killarney's. James, in his bar, featured mementos of Ireland. Celtic crosses and a picture of St. Patrick could be found in Killarney's. In St. Lucy's, Johnny, Lenny, and Roger noticed that on the wall near the bar was a picture of a village, which the three assumed was a village somewhere in Italy. Also, due to the fact that the majority of the patrons spoke Italian, rather than English, the three assumed that St. Lucy's cliental consisted mostly of Italian immigrants.

"Gentlemen, what can I get you?" the bartender asked in Italian. The bartender looked to be in his late thirties, and he had a Sicilian look to him—with his dark eyes, hair, and moustache.

"A lager beer," Johnny replied in French.

The bartender gave Johnny a look, but he did not say anything. "For you, sir?" he asked, turning to Lenny.

"Blended whiskey, ice, and an olive," Lenny replied, also in French.

Like Johnny, the bartender gave Lenny a look. "And you, sir?" he asked, turning to Roger. "Or would 'Father' be more proper?"

Roger laughed. "It really doesn't matter," he replied in Latin.

Now the bartender laughed. "Just like a priest to speak in Latin."

Roger smiled.

"Anyway," the bartender continued, "what will you have?"

"Chardonnay."

"One moment," the bartender said. After he returned with their drinks, he turned to Johnny and Lenny. "You know, you guys' Italian is a bit mumbled."

"That's because it wasn't Italian," Johnny said. "It was French. That's the best Latin language that I know."

"Same here," Lenny added. "I'm originally from Switzerland, so French was the language that we used often in everyday life."

"Well, you can speak English, you know?" the bartender said in English, which did have a distinct Italian accent.

"You speak English?!" Roger said.

The bartender nodded. "I'm an American. I had to learn the language. And I can see that you're from England, Father."

"Wales actually," Roger said.

"Oh, I see. Well, what about you?" the bartender asked, turning to Johnny.

"I'm an American. I was born here in New York."

The bartender nodded. "Oh, I see. Then I take it that this is your father," he began, gesturing to Lenny, "and your grandfather?" he added, gesturing to Roger.

"No," Johnny replied, shaking his head. "These two are a couple of friends of mine. This man over here," he began, turning to Lenny, "helps me in my detective business. And this man over here," Johnny added, turning to Roger, "is helping us on a particular case."

"Detective business?"

Johnny nodded. "Yeah, I run a detective business on the upper west side of New York. I have a big sign on my business that says 'Garland Detective Agency.'"

"Haven't seen it."

Johnny was crushed. "Oh," he said, looking down at his beer. "_Maybe I need to do better advertising...?_ Anyway," he began, turning back to the bartender, and removing the photograph of Shania, "I need to know, if you've ever seen this girl before?"

The bartender looked at the photograph and said, "Can't say that I have, mister. She's pretty cute though. Looks like a white Indian girl."

"Do you think some people in here might have seen her?"

"I don't know. But you can certainly ask them."

And that is exactly what Johnny, Lenny, and Roger did. But the answer came back the same—"no."

* * *

The party returned to the Garland residence with the winter solstice moon glowing above them.

"How could no one have seen her?" asked Johnny.

"This is the largest city in America, Master," answered Lenny. "She's one person out of the so many millions who live here."

"But she's also a person infected with malice! They would tend to stand out, you know?" Johnny sighed, as he turned to a window that would allow him to look out at the city. In the distance, he could see the star of the large Christmas tree that gazed over Times Square. "_Come on, think! There's got to be some pattern here. People infected with malice, what do they have in common?"_ But as Johnny thought, something caught his eye. A woman with blonde hair wearing a tan trench coat approached the entrance to his office. But as she began to climb the stairs, she stumbled, and Johnny was able to see her face. He gasped. "I'll be damned!"

"What is it, Master?"

But Johnny did not respond to his friend and servant's question. Instead, he charged to the door. Opening the door, he saw the woman crawling up the stairs. It was truly her. "Shania?!"

Shania tried to lift her head, but could not.

"The Blue Light of Earth has certainly had its effect," Roger said. "When malice leaves the body, it causes that person to be temporarily weak. Kind of like a prisoner that has been starved in a prisoner of war camp. Shania needs to eat something, but first, I'm going to give her the medicine that will forever remove what traces of malice remain."

Johnny lifted Shania's head. Her eyes were no longer the 'eyes of fire' that he had seen in the Fountain of Sukune, but were instead the blue eyes of her Euro-American mother.

"Johnny," she whispered.

"It's all right, Shania. We're going to help you."

"I don't want to turn into a monster."

"You won't. We're going to help you."

But once Johnny completed his sentence, a blast of negative energy pushed him back. Or rather, threw him back against the brick wall of his detective business. Fortunately his shoulder blades hit the wall, and not his head. Otherwise, he probably would have been knocked unconscious, or would have suffered a concussion later.

Shania now stood upright. Her 'eyes of fire' had returned. She now looked like the 'Devil's daughter.'

"Master?!" Lenny said, as he charged to check on Johnny.

"The last of the malice is not going down without a fight," Roger said. "Wait, Lenny!" he continued, when he noticed Lenny charging to Shania.

Lenny may not longer have been in his 20s, but that did not mean that he still could not fight. Lenny tried to wrestle Shania to the ground.

"You don't need to do that!" continued Roger.

But it was too late. Lenny was thrown back. Fortunately, he, like Johnny, did not land on his head.

Roger Bacon, the frail-living skeleton, now stepped forward.

"Roger, get inside!" Johnny uttered. "She could easily kill you."

Truer words were never spoken. But Roger knew something Johnny did not. He knew how to control Shania. Roger removed the portion of the Eucharist that he had taken from Europe, and raised it. When Shania saw it, she immediately began to calm down. Roger would slowly lower the Host, and Shania would follow its movements. "That's right, Shania. You're not worthy to receive Him, but He's going to heal you." Roger placed the Host in her mouth. And in her current condition, he closed her mouth, and made sure she swallowed it. Almost immediately, from his hands, Roger could feel a peace inside Shania. It was similar to the peace he and everyone else felt, when Johnny released the Blue Light of Earth in Nemeton Monastery.

Shania fell back against the iron rail that ran next to the stairs. She looked up to the stars in heaven and said, "It's gone. It's gone!"

Roger nodded. "Yes, my dear child, it truly is gone."

* * *

Sometime after dawn the next day, Johnny decided that he wanted to go out for a walk, and he asked Shania to accompany him. Their destination was a spot underneath the Brooklyn Bridge.

"Seems ironic, doesn't it?" Johnny said.

"What does?"

"Earlier this year, I found you at this spot. And it was here that you told me that you were infected with malice, and that you could lose your mind at anytime."

Shania smiled. "Yeah, I did." Then she sat against one of the bridge's steel beams, and wrapped her arms around her knees. Looking at Johnny, she added, "You never gave up on me, did you?"

"How could I? You're a member of my team."

Shania continued to smile. "Thank you."

"Don't mention it," Johnny said, returning the smile.

Shania looked out at the East River, before she turned back to Johnny. "It must have been a hard journey; to help me and all?"

Johnny smirked. "Oh, I don't think it was as hard as some of the places that we went to."

"Where did you go?"

"Europe—Wales and France more specifically, and Japan."

"What are those countries like?"

"Well, Wales and France are similar to what we'll find in the States. Wales is part of Great Britain, and we all know what kind of connection Britain has with America. France is a little different, although it has ties with America as well. France is a predominately Catholic country, while America is predominately Protestant.

"Japan is totally different, however. A completely different culture, but there is a distinct beauty to it. Cherry blossoms and such, although we didn't see any of them in the dead of winter."

"You know, I have connections with one of the European countries that you mentioned?"

"Really, which one?"

"France. My mother was French-Canadian."

"Interesting."

And then there was a moment of silence. Something that could be referred to as 'the moment of uncomfortable silence,' until Johnny decided to break it. "So, Shania, what will you do now?"

"I'm not sure. I remember one time, on this bridge, you asked me, if I wanted to stay and help you with your detective business?"

Johnny's eyes grew wide. "_Holy shit!_ _I do remember telling her that!"_

"Is the invitation still open? It's my way of paying you back."

Johnny looked at the water, before he said, "You don't have to look at it that way, Shania."

"Well, I do think I owe you, and I don't mind."

Johnny turned to her. "You're more than welcome to help me, Shania, but…"

"Yes?"

"I'm not sure, if you want to now."

Shania stood. "What do you mean?"

"Do you love me, Shania?"

"Huh?!"

"Do you love me?" Johnny repeated with the same tone in his voice.

"I—I don't know. I like you a lot, yes, but love…"

Johnny nodded. "I thought so."

"Wait! Do you love me, Johnny?"

"At one time I would have said 'yes,' but I can't really say that now. I think, to be honest, I lusted you more than I loved you. But, in that time, God! I'm not good at saying this stuff."

"It's okay. Go on."

Johnny sighed. "In that time, I think I've found someone I truly love."

"Oh…I see," Shania said, before she turned away and began to pace.

"_Oh, boy!_ _I really fucked up this one! In a second, she's going to start yelling at me."_

"Yet you risked your life to help me?" Shania said, perfectly calm.

Johnny was stunned. "Yes," he said with a nod.

"Why'd you do that, Johnny?"

"You're a member of my team. I just couldn't abandon you."

Shania smiled. "Thank you. Can I ask you just one more favor?"

"What's that?"

"You got any money?"

Johnny nodded. "Yes, I have some."

"Would you give me some?"

"How much do you need?"

"Twenty dollars."

Johnny handed Shania a bill with President Andrew Jackson's face on it.

"Thank you. I'm going to fly home today."

"Home?"

"Back to Colorado—I'm going to help rebuild my tribe. There are lots of other Native Americans that are lost, due to the policies that the United States acted sixty to seventy years ago. Perhaps me, and Natan, can help them."

"We can take you there, Shania."

"You'd do that?"

Johnny nodded.

Shania stepped forward, kissed his cheek, and placed the $20 bill back in his hand. "Thank you, Johnny."

* * *

An hour later, Bacon Jet left the private airfield in New York carrying Johnny, Lenny, Roger, and Shania, and was bound for the Grand Canyon in Colorado. The trip lasted four hours. Johnny escorted Shania off the ship, but as Johnny turned to re-board Bacon Jet, Shania informed him that he would see her again.

With Johnny back on board, Roger said, "Well, where should we go? Should we return to New York?"

Johnny shook his head. "No, let's go to France. After that, you can go back home, Roger. Lenny and I will pay for our expenses back to America."

"Why thank you, Johnny." And with a look in his eye, Roger added, "I think I know where our destination in France will be."


	16. Christmas Eve

**Author's Note**: Well, here it is, the final chapter. I appreciate all the comments that I received so far on this story, and I hope I ended it on a good note. If anyone has any possible sequel ideas, I'll certainly look at them, but I'm not sure when a sequel will be written.

_Someone is waiting behind an unlocked door.  
Gray circles overhead,  
empties on the floor,  
cracks in the wall,  
have grown too long.  
The slow hand is dragging on,  
afraid to meet the dawn.  
One too many wasted sunsets.  
One too many for the road.  
And after dark,  
the door is always open.  
Hoping someone else will show_—

"Wasted Sunsets"—Deep Purple

**Darkness and Light**

**Chapter XVI**

A few stars were in the midnight sky, when Bacon Jet landed in the forest meadow outside of Domremy. Since it was midnight, it was now officially Christmas Eve. Johnny had kept his promise to Jeanne.

"I wonder if the snow and ice has—whoa!" Johnny said, as he slipped and nearly fell on a spot of black ice.

Lenny smirked. "I'll take that as a 'no.'"

"But it does look like the ice has melted some," Roger said, while he observed the trees. "Based on what I can see, there doesn't look to be as much ice on the trees."

"How can you tell that?" asked Johnny. "It's after midnight, and we're in the dead of night!"

"Don't you notice how the trees aren't leaning over, as much as they did before?"

Johnny looked at the trees. They did seem more upright. "Yeah, I can tell that."

"That means that something's not on them to weigh them down."

"In any case," began Lenny, "there still appears to be some black ice here and there. The sun's not striking all of it. So let's be careful."

And as they did a previous evening in Domremy, Johnny and Lenny walked arm in arm with Roger to make certain that he did not fall.

* * *

"_I wonder if Jeanne's here?"_ Johnny said, as the party approached St. Jehanne's Inn. Inside the inn, it was quiet. There were a few patrons, but the bar was still. Of the patrons that were there, Jeanne was not one of them.  
"Well, hello, gentlemen!" Jacques said with a smile. "It's good to see you guys right before Christmas. Merry Christmas!"

"Merry Christmas, Jacques," Lenny said.

"Yes, Merry Christmas," continued Johnny.

"Merry Christmas!" added Roger.

"What can I get you?" Jacques asked. "I'm not ready to close the bar, but as you can see, it's pretty quiet."

"We need some rooms," Lenny began. "But a drink might be nice too."

Jacques laughed. "Okay, let me get you guys a drink first. What will it be? What you guys usually order?"

"Sounds good to me," Lenny said.

"Same here," continued Johnny.

"Yes, same here," added Roger.

Jacques smiled, as he prepared a drink of blended whiskey, ice, water, and an olive for Lenny; a lager beer for Johnny; and a Chardonnay for Roger. Once he gave each individual their drinks, he turned to Lenny. "I can set all three of you up in one room, or give you individual rooms?"

"Is there some kind of special deal or something? Because the last time we were here, we all stayed in the same room."

"Well, it is Christmas, so I thought, well that," he motioned Lenny to come closer, "that the young man over here," he said, gesturing to Johnny, "might enjoy having his own room? People his age love stuff like that."

"No extra charge?"

"No extra charge," Jacques said with a smile.

"Then give him his own room." And turning to Johnny, Lenny added, "Master?"

"Yes?" Johnny responded, after taking a gulp.

"I've fixed you up with your own room."

"Really?! Thanks, Lenny!"

Lenny shook his head. "Don't thank me. Thank Jacques over here," he said, gesturing to the bartender and owner.

"Thank you, Jacques," Johnny said with a smile.

"Don't mention it, my boy!"

"Say, Jacques," continued Johnny.

"Yes, sir?"

"Have you seen any of Jeanne lately?"

"Certainly, I saw Miss Hyuga the other day, and I asked her about you." Jacques smiled. "I think she's a bit smitten by you." Then, he chuckled. "And based on how big your eyes got waiting to hear my answer, I'd say that you are too."

Johnny's eyes returned to normal. "I'd say I was smitten by her the moment I met her. I don't think I've met anyone like her before. I'm glad, however, that I kept my promise to her…"

"That you'd see her before Christmas?"

Johnny was stunned. "Huh? How did you know about that?"

"Jeanne told me about it last night. She said that you told her that you'd try to come back to Domremy before Christmas, but she wasn't sure if you'd make it." Wiping a spot from the bar, Jacques added, "Looks like you did."

Johnny smiled. "Yeah, I did." But out of the corner of his eye, he saw Lenny and Roger chuckling. "What are you two giggling about?"

"Oh, nothing," Lenny said. "_Teenage romance."_

* * *

After a few more drinks, Johnny retired for the night. Before he turned off the lamp in his room, Johnny gazed outside a window and observed Domremy at night. The moon glowed brightly, and Johnny was able to see spots of snow and ice that had not melted. St. Remigius' church had a majestic beauty to it at night. One that Johnny never noticed, when he entered the church that night with Jeanne. "_I wonder if St. Joan of Arc experienced the same thing at night all those centuries ago here in Domremy?"_ Leaving the window, Johnny laid down on the bed. "_I wonder what tomorrow will bring? I hope I don't sleep in for too long."_

* * *

Christmas Eve in Domremy was a cold-gray-cloudy day—as possible sign that more winter weather was on the way. At nine thirty that morning, Johnny, Lenny, and Roger knocked on the door of the Hyuga residence. On the other side was Alice, who was wearing an apron. "Hey, everyone! You made it back! I was praying for all of you. Merry Christmas, and do come in!"

The three entered. The Hyuga home had a different feel to it, than when Johnny, Lenny, and Roger first encountered the home a couple of weeks ago. Perhaps it was Alice's cooking. The smell of Christmas dinner was one of those signs that Christmas had almost arrived. Johnny, however, looked around the dining room and into the master room. He was looking for Jeanne.

"Good to see all of you again," Yuri said, as he left the master room for the dining room. "I take it that everything went according to plan? You rescued that girl?"

"Yes," Johnny said with a nod. "Yes, we did."

Yuri smiled. "Johnny, I noticed that before I came in here, you were looking around. Were you looking for something?"

"Uh…"

"Or someone?" Yuri added, while maintaining his smile.

"Uh, no, not really."

"Weren't exactly looking for Jeanne, now were you?" Yuri asked, still smiling.

Lenny and Roger chuckled.

And Johnny shot them a grin, before he turned to Yuri. "Actually, I do need to see her. I told her that I would try and visit her before Christmas. And by one day I made it."

Yuri kept smiling, as he nodded. "She's out for a walk. Probably to the meadow, she really likes that place. You should go, and see her. I'll hear everything about what happened from Lenny and Roger."

Johnny returned the smile and nod. "Okay, then," he said, just before he left the master room and the Hyuga home.

"I really like that kid," Yuri said. "He reminds me of this boy we met in London years ago. Halley was his name. You remember him, don't you, Alice?"

"Who's that?" she asked, coming from the kitchen.

"Halley. That boy we met in London."

"Halley? Oh, you mean Halley Brancket?"

Yuri nodded.

"What about him?"

"Doesn't Johnny remind you of him a little bit?"

Alice paused. "Maybe a little—they have the same kind of hair. And I like Johnny a lot. And I know that you do too."

Yuri nodded. "That I do. Anyone who has the courage to enter Nemeton Monastery is a good man in my opinion."

* * *

A gust of wind began to blow through the village of Domremy. "_I've felt a wind like this many times back in New York,"_ Johnny said. "_It usually means that snow is on its way."_

As Johnny continued to walk to Domremy's meadow, a villager passed him by. Johnny had met this villager before—in St. Jehanne's. "Hello, there!" the villager said. "You're the American I've seen a number of times at St. Jehanne's, correct?"

Johnny nodded. "That is correct."

"I saw you that one night, when you danced with Jeanne. Jacques, the bartender, was asking about you the other night to her. She said that you had to go to Wales. Then you had to go back to America. But she hoped that you would see her again before Christmas. It looks like you made it."

Johnny smiled and nodded. "That I did. I was worried that I wouldn't get back here in time, because, as you can probably guess, Europe to America, and then back to Europe is a long trip."

"I can imagine. Are you coming to St. Jehanne's later tonight?"

"Possibly. I don't know what I'll be doing this evening. By the way, have you seen Jeanne?"

Instead of answering Johnny's question, the man smiled, and gestured for Johnny to turn.

Johnny did. And on the other side was Jeanne, wearing a lavender skirt with white stockings, while her golden hair dangled over her breasts.

"I believe that this pretty young French girl would like to talk to you," the villager said, before he walked away.

A gust of cold air blew through the hair of Johnny and Jeanne. The two eyed each other, before Johnny said, "Merry Christmas, Jeanne."

Jeanne smiled. "Merry Christmas, Johnny."

"Told you I'd make it back."

Jeanne continued to smile. "Yes, you did. Daddy told me about how brave you were in Nemeton Monastery."

"There were times when I wondered if I was going to get out of that place alive." Johnny turned from Jeanne and began to pace, before he turned back. "However, it was nice of your father to compliment me on how 'brave I was.' But, to be honest, I don't think I was any braver, than any of the other people, who entered that monastery."

As Johnny completed his sentence, sleet descended to the earth. Johnny chuckled, and pointed to the sky. "Well, I knew this was coming."

"How could you tell?"

"It's just something in the air. You can just kind of feel when it's going to rain or snow."

Jeanne continued to smile, while ice began to lodge itself in her hair.

"I don't want to see you become an ice statue," Johnny said, while he brushed the ice away. "Care to go to the inn? I've got a room there. I've got this weird feeling that we have a lot to discuss."

Jeanne kept her smile. And Johnny thought he saw her blush. But what was irrefutable was that Jeanne responded with a "yes."

* * *

Johnny and Jeanne were brushing the ice off their coats, and kicking the ice off their boots on a doormat inside of St. Jehanne's Inn, when Jacques came up to them smiling. "Looks like you two got out of the ice just in time."

"Just barely," Johnny said, returning the smile.

"It's supposed to change from sleet over to snow pretty soon. Looks like it will be another White Christmas in Domremy."

"Sure looks like it," Johnny said. "Thought I'd show Jeanne the room I got. Plus, it'll get us out of the cold for a while."

Jacques continued to smile. "Sounds good. Would you like something to drink—such as tea, coffee, or pop? I could get you wine or beer, but it might be a bit too early for that."

"Hmm," Johnny began, while he placed his chin between his thumb and first finger, "I think you're right about the beer, so I'll have some ice tea." And turning to Jeanne, Johnny added, "Do you want anything, Jeanne?"

"Tea's fine for me as well."

Jacques poured Johnny and Jeanne a glass of tea. But when Johnny went to pay for them, Jacques gestured for him to stop. "That's not necessary, Johnny."

Johnny was confused. "Are you sure?"

Jacques smiled and nodded. "Yes, I'm sure."

"Thanks, Jacques."

* * *

"You know, I really like that guy," Johnny said, before he took a sip of his tea, as he directed Jeanne to his room at the inn.

"You mean Jacques?"

Johnny nodded. "Yeah. I mean, he's only known us for about two weeks, and he treats us like we're his own family."

Jeanne returned the nod. "That's what kind of person he is. Daddy told me once, when he first came to Domremy, Jacques treated him like he had lived in this village all of his life, even though he had only been here for about a week."

"In some ways he reminds me of my bartender, James, from New York City. He's an Irish immigrant that survived the _Titanic_ disaster, and he runs an Irish bar in the city called 'Killarney's.' With that being said, here's my room," Johnny said, as he gestured to the door, and removed his door key.

"It's been a while, since I've seen one of these rooms," Jeanne said, after Johnny unlocked the door, and she entered.

"I wouldn't say it's much different from what should be in a hotel room—a bed, dresser, mirror, closet, washroom—all those good things."

"I'm sure that's true. But the reason why I said that is that I remember asking Jacques, when I was little, if I could see one of his rooms, and he showed me."

Jeanne sat on the bed, while Johnny stood by the same window that allowed him to observe Domremy at night. "Would you say that the room looks about the same, as when you can remember it?" he asked.

"I'm not really sure, but probably. Nothing really changes much in this village."

"Then that makes me wonder something."

"What?"

"Last night, before I went to bed, I was looking outside this window," Johnny began, gesturing to it, "and I observed St. Remigius' church under the moon that night. And I began to wonder, 'Did St. Jehanne d' Arc see the same things that I'm seeing?'"

"Probably. Like I said earlier, nothing really changes in this village."

Johnny smiled, and took a seat next to Jeanne. "Perhaps I should take you to New York City? Change is happening there all the time."

Jeanne returned the smile. "I hear a lot about America in books and in the paper. I suppose it would be nice to see it one day. What I always here is that when ships are sailing across the Atlantic, and they come to the Statue of Liberty, some of the immigrants think they are seeing the statue of a goddess from the days of old."

Johnny chuckled. "Well, I never thought of it that way."

"That's probably because you see it everyday. I've met people who have come to our village from Paris, and they talk about how special our village is—such as the meadow or St. Remigius' church. And while I find those places to be special, I don't think about them in the same way that these tourists do."

Johnny nodded, while he took a sip of his ice tea. "Yeah, I see your point."

"Speaking of America, Johnny?"

"Yes?"

"What happened with you and that girl? Shania was her name, right?"

Johnny nodded. "That's right."

"I take it that you helped her, right?"

Johnny placed his tea on a nightstand, before he stretched himself out on his bed. "Yeah, we were able to help her. All the malice in her body was removed from her."

Jeanne placed her glass on the nightstand next to Johnny's, and laid back with him, but she turned to her side, so she could see his face. "And then what?"

"We spent the evening at my house in New York, and then yesterday we flew her back to her home state, before we flew all the way here. She said that she's going to try and rebuild her tribe."

"Her tribe?"

Johnny nodded. "She's a Native American girl."

"What's that?"

"Someone who lived in the U.S. before European settlers arrived. The government basically decimated the Native American way of life, so she's trying to reach out to those Indians, or Native Americans, who have basically lost everything."

Jeanne nodded. She briefly turned to look at a picture of Domremy taken in the 1870s that was above Johnny's bed, before she turned back to him. Twirling her hair, she asked, "Johnny?"

"Yes, Jeanne?"

"I know I shouldn't ask questions like this, but I really need to know."

"Go ahead. It's all right, Jeanne." Johnny suspected that she was going to ask him a question that involved either a relationship between himself and Shania, or a question that involved a relationship between him and her.

"I need to ask," she began, "did you mention me at all, when all of this was going on?"

"I can tell you that I thought about you a lot. When we dropped your dad off in Domremy, after we finished our business in Wales, I thought about stopping Bacon Jet, so I could see you. But then I realized that I had a job to do, and that would be holding everybody else up.

"After we rescued Shania, I indirectly messaged you…"

"Indirectly?"

Johnny nodded. "I told her that I found someone who I think I truly love."

"Think?!" Jeanne said with a smile, as she leaned against his nose.

Johnny returned the smile. "Okay, know!"

The two maintained their smiles, as they leaned forward for a kiss; and with Johnny guiding her, the two returned with an upright position, and he placed Jeanne on his lap.

"Johnny?" Jeanne said with her hands on his thighs.

"Yes, Jeanne?" he replied, with a hand on her ass.

"What's Christmas like in New York?"

"It really depends on just who you are, and where you are in New York. New York is a very diverse place—plenty of Italians, Irish, Germans, Poles, and such."

"Well, what about you? What do you do on Christmas Eve?"

"In the last few years, I've gone to mass at the Church of St. John the Divine. That's the Episcopalian cathedral in New York City. Lenny goes to his own church, and the two of us meet up for Christmas dinner. What about you?"

"It's very similar to what you do. We all go to the mass at the church—the earliest one, because there are a lot of things that we do together on Christmas Eve."

"Like what?"

"We stop by St. Jehanne's for a drink, and then we have Christmas dinner."

"Do you open presents?"

"That's done tomorrow."

"Me and Lenny are the same. But we'll be doing those things, when we get back to America. And I think that's going to be a while. I'm going to be spending some time in Domremy."

Jeanne smiled. "Johnny?"

"Yes?"

"Care to go with us tonight—to church and to the pub? I'm not sure about dinner, but that can probably be arranged." Jeanne giggled. "Chances are Daddy's already invited you, Lenny, and Roger to Christmas dinner."

Johnny chuckled. "Probably, and sure, I'll go with you."

* * *

Early that evening, Johnny went to Christmas Eve mass with the Hyugas, but he was not going alone. Lenny and Roger accompanied him. Although Johnny was the lone Protestant at this Catholic mass, it was easy for him to follow, because what he saw was practically identical to what he would have received in his Anglican parish. But when it came time to receive the Eucharist, Johnny remained seated, because he learned about the position of the Catholic Church about non-Catholics receiving the Eucharist, when he went to church once with Lenny.

After mass, the Hyugas and Johnny, Lenny, and Roger were off to St. Jehanne's. Yuri, Alice, Jeanne, Zachary, and Roger drank wine; Lenny drank blended whiskey; and Johnny drank beer. During their time at the bar, Jeanne sat next to Johnny, and kept her blue eyes locked onto him.

"Have you noticed how our daughter can't seem to take her eyes off Johnny?" Yuri whispered to Alice.

"I think we've had this conversation before," Alice replied in a whisper. "But, if anything, there's a part of me that thinks Jeanne is a lot like her father, when you first met me."

Yuri smirked. "Eh, maybe a little—it always seems to come back to me somehow, doesn't it?"

Alice kissed his cheek. "Yes. Yes, it does."

After a few drinks, the group returned to the Hyuga home for Christmas dinner. Alice fixed a hearty one—turkey, mashed potatoes and gravy, and cranberry sauce. Once Yuri, Alice, Jeanne, Zachary, Johnny, Lenny, and Roger had eaten enough, they relaxed in the master room. Everyone had a glass of wine, and after wine, Johnny, Lenny, and Roger decided it was time to turn in, and they made their way back to St. Jehanne's Inn.

* * *

"Good morning, Johnny," Jeanne said in Johnny's room at the inn.

"Morning, Jeanne," he said with a kiss, before he started to look around his room. "I can't see the clock. What time is it now?"

"6:30. Zack will be getting up soon."

"And I'm sure your mom and dad will too."

"No, not really. I wouldn't be surprised if Mom and Daddy don't get up 'til about eight."

Johnny nodded. "But in any respect, we probably should get over to your place soon."

Jeanne returned the nod. "Yeah, you're probably right," she said, before she pulled back the bedcovers to reveal her perky breasts. "Merry Christmas, Johnny," she said with a smile.

"Merry Christmas, Jeanne," he said, also with a smile, just before the two kissed.

_In the game of life,  
the strong survive.  
We're on a one-way street.  
We gotta make it out alive.  
And never let them drag us down.  
In the game of life,  
we live and die.  
Another breath begins,  
another chance to win the fight,  
from the moment that you hit the ground,  
in the game of life_—

"The Game of Life"—Scorpions

**The End**

**+ Cody +**


End file.
